World Mental Health Day - 2008
by Savitha C Muppala on Oct 10, 2008Advertisement
World Mental Health Day
World Mental Health Day falls on October 10, 2008. The World Federation for Mental Health (WFMH) focuses on attracting worldwide attention on burning global mental health issues through education, information, active support and resources, which forms the main theme of this year’s campaign.Depression
Depression is one of the most common mental disorders affecting approximately 340 million people in the world. No one is immune from depression - it occurs in people of all social classes, all countries and all cultural settings. A depressive disorder is not the same as a passing blue mood. It is not a sign of personal weakness or a condition that can be willed or wished away.Anxiety Disorder
Anxiety is the abnormal fear or reaction, towards any stress which the person can normally handle. Generalized anxiety involves excessive worry about actual circumstances, events or conflicts. The patient is anxious or apprehensive and may show signs like sweating, palpitation, dry mouth, dizziness, nausea, loss of appetite, frequent urination, and difficulty in swallowing.Schizophrenia
Schizophrenia is a chronic, severe, and disabling brain disease. Although schizophrenia affects men and women with equal frequency, the disorder often appears earlier in men, usually in the late teens or early twenties. In the brain afflicted with schizophrenia, something goes wrong in this communication system. The cause of schizophrenia is unknown. There are various theories to explain the development of this disorder.Suicide
Suicide may be defined as the deliberate ending of one’s own life in an act of self-harm. Attempted suicide is the unsuccessful suicidal act. Research says that certain forms of mental disorders like depression plays a part in the 90% of the cases of suicides. The severity of depression often leads to the increased risk of committing suicide. People suffering from depression are most vulnerable to suicidal thoughts and may commit suicide.Advertisement
