A broken arm

About this video

When someone breaks an arm, nobody tells them to "just get over it". They see a doctor, wear a cast, and in time the arm heals. Yet many people feel they must hide it when their mind is unwell. This video asks why the mind should be any different from the body.

The World Health Organization (WHO) describes mental health as a state of mental well-being that lets people cope with the stresses of life, use their abilities, learn and work well, and play a part in their community. Everyone has mental health, just as everyone has a body, and it can be better or worse at different times of life. A mental health condition is a problem with thoughts, feelings or behaviour that causes a lot of distress or makes everyday life hard. The most common are anxiety conditions, where fear and worry are strong and hard to control, and depression, a low mood and loss of interest that lasts for weeks, not just a bad day.

They are common. In 2023 nearly 1 in 7 people in the world, about 1.2 billion, were living with one, and among 10 to 19 year-olds it is also about 1 in 7. Many begin early: a review of 192 studies found that of people who had ever had a condition, about 1 in 3 first had it before 14, about half before 18 and about 6 in 10 before 25. That is why noticing early, and getting help early, matters.

WHO says treatments that work exist. For anxiety and depression they include talking therapies, and depending on age and how serious it is, medicine may help too, though most people in the world still can't get good care. Nobody chooses a mental health condition, just as nobody chooses to break an arm. If your mood, sleep or worries have felt hard for weeks, tell someone you trust or a doctor; if anyone is in danger, call your local emergency number. This video explains mental health on Knaph, from the Health Level 1 lesson Mental Health Is Health.

Transcript

1. 0:00A broken arm? You see a doctor and wear a cast. But many people hide it when their mind is unwell. Why?
2. 0:10Mental health is well-being that lets you cope with stress, use your abilities, learn and work, and take part. Everyone has it, like a body.
3. 0:23A mental health condition makes everyday life hard. The most common are anxiety, and depression, a low mood that lasts for weeks.
4. 0:35They are common. Nearly one in seven people in the world. For teenagers, about one in seven too.
5. 0:45Many start young. Of people who ever had one, about half first had it before eighteen.
6. 0:56Treatments work, like talking therapies. Nobody chooses a condition, just as nobody chooses a broken arm.
7. 1:08If things have felt hard for weeks, tell someone you trust, or a doctor. If anyone is in danger, call your emergency number.
8. 1:19Mental health is health.