UNDERSTANDING THE ABC OF MENTAL HEALTH. A Youth Baraza publication by Wanzala John Bryan

Being mentally sound is everyone’s dream whether young or elderly as long as they understand what it is not to be mentally un-sound.

To better understand this, we will draw a distinction between mental health and mental illness.

Broadly speaking, mental health is the state of well- being in which an individual realises his or her own abilities, cope with the normal stresses of life, work productively and is able to make a contribution to his or her society.It therefore includes subjective well-being, perceived self-efficiency, autonomy, emotional potential among others.

Impairment of any of the above is a risk factor for mental disorderswhich are components of mental health.

By definition, mental disorders are those health conditions that affect and alter cognitive functioning, emotional responses, and behaviour associated with distress and or impaired functioning.

On the other hand, mental illness refers to conditions that affect a person’s thinking, feeling, mood, or behaviour which includes among others, depression.

Depression is a mental health disorder characterised by persistently depressed mood or loss of interest in activities, causing significant impairment in daily life.

It is important to note that depression is one of the major mental health illnesses or disorders world-wide and it is estimated that more than 264 million people of all ages suffer from depression.

In Africa, Uganda is ranked among the top six countries with depressive disorders, with females and males accounting for 5.1% and 3.6% of those affected respectively while 2.9% of Ugandans live with anxiety disorders. Depression is a real danger that is eating up our society and we need to do more than what is being done today.

Despite all the above data, should all hope be lost, the answer is NO. Depression is treatable and manageable. Let’s not despair, let’s not lose hope, let’s not fear.
We’re in this together and we’ll walk the talk through AWARENESS, which we can do best.

HELLO UGANDA, in such challenging times of the pandemic, you’re not the only one suffering, We too are. Don’t let depression kill you , we’re here to cause AWARENESS that this is STOPPABLE.

Together for Us…. Let’s fight DEPRESSION.
Wanzala John Bryan.