Mental health is a “state of mental well-being that enables people to cope with the stresses of life, realize their abilities, learn well and work well, and contribute to their community”1. It is an important part of the overall health and well-being of a person, and is hence a basic human right1. Mental health is not a binary state, but rather a continuum, with different states along the axis1.
A wide variety of factors, both positive and negative, can affect mental health, and can be grouped into individual, family, community and structural factors 2. The impact of these factors can also wax and wane across time periods in a person's life, with factors adversely affecting mental health having a larger impact during impressionable time periods such as during childhood2-3.
Some examples of individual factors that affect mental health include cognitive and social skills, the ability to regulate one's emotions, the capacity for empathy, the ability to manage adverse situations and events, the ability to play a role in society, and the capability to socially interact with others1,4.
Some examples of family and community factors that affect mental health include good parenting and positive social networks2.
Some examples of structural factors that affect mental health include economic security, social and gender equality and good infrastructure2.
It is notable that mental health is dynamic for each individual at different points of life; the contribution of factors to mental health, as well as the degree of mental health along the continuum that a person finds satisfactory, may change4.

Mental health “affects how we think, feel and act”, and is the basis of our ability to make decisions and interact with others2. Because it is an important part of the overall health and well-being of a person, it is a basic human right, and has intrinsic value2. When we have good mental health, we are able to function as individuals in society, and conversely, when we have poor mental health, our ability to function is compromised2. Poor mental health also has financial and social consequences, and is linked to poorer socio-economic outcomes2.

Although mental health is an individualised state, mental health problems don't have to be. As mentioned above, mental health is dependent on many factors, a lot of which are external, non-individual factors. Many protective factors for mental health are actually family or community factors2, with supportive families and communities helping to enable mental health recovery2. Although there is still a stigma that persists with regards to mental health problems3,5, which understandably impedes help-seeking5, it is also true that with the proper external help, people with mental health issues can still function at a level close to normal2. Efforts are ongoing to mitigate the impact of stigma on mental health help-seeking behaviour6.

There are many different types of mental health problems and hence many signs of poor mental health. A list of mental health issues can be found here.
Signs include7:

• Feeling sad
• Confusion
• Reduction in ability to concentrate
• Excessive fear/worry
• Excessive feelings of guilt
• Mood swings
• Social withdrawal
• Fatigue
• Insomnia
• Delusions
• Paranoia
• Hallucinations
• Inability to cope with daily problems
• Stress
• Inability to relate to people
• Alcohol/Drug usage problem
• Large changes in eating/sexual habits
• Excessive anger, hostility or violence
• Suicide ideation

There are many different types of mental health professionals, including:

• Psychiatrists
• Clinical psychologists
• Counsellors/Therapists
• Psychiatric social workers

1. Mental health: strengthening our response. World Health Organisation. Updated June 17, 2022. Accessed September 24, 2022. https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/mental-health-strengthening-our-response
2. World Mental Health Report. World Health Organisation. Published June 16, 2022. Accessed September 24, 2022. https://www.who.int/teams/mental-health-and-substance-use/world-mental-health-report
3. Wahlbeck K. Public mental health: the time is ripe for translation of evidence into practice. World Psychiatry. 2015;14(1):36-42. doi:10.1002/wps.20178
4. Galderisi S, Heinz A, Kastrup M, Beezhold J, Sartorius N. Toward a new definition of mental health. World Psychiatry. 2015;14(2):231-233. doi:10.1002/wps.20231
5. Bharadwaj P, Pai MM, Suziedelyte A. Mental health stigma. Econ Lett. 2017;159:57-60. doi:10.1016/j.econlet.2017.06.028
6. Wainberg ML, Scorza P, Shultz JM, et al. Challenges and Opportunities in Global Mental Health: a Research-to-Practice Perspective. Curr Psychiatry Rep. 2017;19(5):28. doi:10.1007/s11920-017-0780-z
7. Mental Illness. Mayo Clinic. Published June 08, 2019. Accessed September 24, 2022. https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/mental-illness/symptoms-causes/syc-20374968