Why Self Harm Needs to be Talked About More
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By: Angelina Benadivez
10/25/21
Self harm is very common throughout young adolescence during this generation. Self harm is no joke. Once you start it’s like an addiction. Some signs someone could be hurting themselves are low self esteem, difficulty handling feelings, relationship issues. From the website Mhanational.org “Research indicates self injury occurs in as many as 4% of adults in the United States” “studies show an even higher risk for self harming/injury in college students with rates ranging from 17-35%.” There are ways to stop self harming and get help. From (MHA) Mental health America New York Times states “nowadays a lot of younger girls especially, are influenced by various media.” Self harm is never the option when going through something rough. “There is hope,” Ms. Dupil said, ”if the person going through this has some control, if you listen to them, if you’re curious about their behavior and not afraid of it.” There are so many hotlines for self injury and therapy or talking to a peer, friend, adult, teacher, anyone you trust enough. Talk to them about what you’re going through. You are not alone. Someone out there cares.
By: Angelina Casados
11/1/21
Anxiety and depression are very common in our generation and many teens who suffer from these mental illnesses don’t have a good way or even any way of coping. Here are some different ways you can cope if you don’t know how to. I’m going to start off with ways to cope with anxiety. Taking deep breaths can help you keep calm in stressful situations. Going for walks can help you clear your mind. Writing down what’s wrong, sometimes clarifying what’s happening can help you figure out what you need. Everyone needs a break sometimes and especially if you’re experiencing anxiety because it makes you way more stressed than it should. Ways to cope with depression are a lot different than they would be to cope with anxiety. Here are different ways you can cope with your depression. Talking to someone or reaching out, sometimes communicating with someone can help you take whatever's wrong off of your chest. Do what you enjoy doing, it’s always good to have time for yourself, doing what makes you happy can help. Make sure to prioritize your mental health, it may not seem like it to you but your mental health is one of the most important things that you need to care for, as it not only affects you mentally but it can also affect you physically. Being alone or isolating yourself all the time can take a toll on your mental health, it's always good to spend time with people you care about. Your mental health matters.
Resources used in this article: https://www.healthline.com/health/mental-health/how-to-cope-with-anxiety
https://www.helpguide.org/articles/depression/coping-with-depression.htm
Mental health hotlines:
https://www.samhsa.gov/find-help/national-helpline
https://www.mentalhealth.gov/get-help/immediate-help
Depression
By: Angelina Benadivez
11/22/21
Depression is a mood disorder that makes you feel sadness and loss of motivation to do simple things throughout the day whether it is self hygiene or getting up and starting your day. It may affect other people in many different ways but the most common is sadness, feeling down, and loss of motivation to do things you usually love to do and enjoy normally. Health.Hardvard.edu has stated “ Depression is an ongoing problem, not a passing one. It consists of episodes during which the symptoms last for at least 2 weeks. Depression can last for several weeks, months, or years”. It affects men and women in different ways, for women you might feel irritable, have anxiety, mood swings, fatigue, dwelling on negative thoughts and for men you may avoid family and social gatherings, overworking yourself without a break, display abusive or controlling behavior in relationships. Depression doesn’t just affect you being happy but it also affects your ability to think, it messes with your attention, memory, and decision making abilities. It affects your executive function because it can get in the way of your ability to process information. ”Depression isn’t the same as being sad. It’s normal to feel blue or unmotivated from time to time, but depression is more constant. And, it has a real, biological basis. It’s a serious mood disorder that can negatively impact your health and quality of life, as well as those closest to you.” psycom.net states.
Many people that have depression don’t seek help or the receive the right help they may need, if you don’t seek help nor get the right coping for it, it can lead to physical symptoms or thoughts of suicide. Some causes of depression consist of historical depression in the family, stressful or major life events, hormone changes, certain medications. Whether or not you have one of those and you may think you have depression please seek the help medically because it could lead to worse health problems, if you ever think no one is there for you, that is a lie you are telling yourself. There is always someone there so please get the help you need.
Stay
By: Abigail Gatsch
12/3/21
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There are more than 200 classified forms of mental disorders, some very common and others not so much. These are conditions that affect your mood, thinking and behavior, a lot go undiagnosed. When you think of a mental disorder you might automatically think of a mental illness with the word “disorder” in the title of the diagnosis like depression, anxiety or bipolar disorders. These are mental disorders but there are various types, including BPD,PTSD, schizophrenia, OCD, ED, Paranoia and Dissociative disorders etc. An estimate of 26% Americans ages 18+ struggle with mental illness according to https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/wellness-and-prevention/mental-health-disorder-statistics?amp=true “ Most people who commit suicide have a diagnosable mental disorder “. Suicide is the 10th leading cause of death in the US for ALL ages. From the website Save.org, “Everyday approximately 130 American’s die from suicide” it then goes on to state that “ Suicide takes the lives of over 48,500 American’s every year “. Suicide is Preventable. If you believe someone is a threat to themselves you can call 9-1-1 and ask for a Mental Health Team. They will walk you through a process of how to handle things, carefully. They will send someone to that person immediately. It seems as though it is a resource not many people are aware is available. The number to the national suicide prevention lifeline is 800-273-8255. Your feelings are valid, what you are feeling is real and you matter! Break the silence and always check on the people you love.
Unseen Struggles of Mental Illness
12/3/21
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What is mental health? Mental health is what it's like in your brain. Sometimes it can be really good and other times it could feel that you're stuck in your own mind. According to polaristeen.com one in five teens suffer from mental illness in some way. Dealing with mental illnesses is one of the hardest things, sometimes the struggles can go unseen.
A lot of teens find it hard to open up. One anonymous 9th grade student from Sandia was asked why that is and they stated “Because I don't want my feelings to cause problems or burden someone or drag them down with me” That sums up how a lot of teens might feel. Just know that there is always someone to talk to. You may feel like a burden but there is someone out there that thinks differently. Your problems matter and should never go unseen.
You may have someone in your life that seems like the happiest person, always having a smile on their face, laughing, and making jokes, but that person may be having the hardest time in their mind. Lots of people would rather have everyone see them happy and outgoing than showing what their real feelings are. The same anonymous 9th grade Sandia student described what it's like in their head even though they always put on a smile.“It affects me because it drains me of all my energy and makes it hard to do simple tasks.” Mental health can make it hard to do things such as showering, doing school work or even getting out of bed in the morning.
The difficulties within mental illness are beyond hard. Sometimes it makes you not want to do things you used to love. The 9th grade Sandia student was asked what the hardest part of their mental health was and they answered “Definitely losing motivation” Losing motivation can push you back so far that you don't know how to get back on track.
Your struggles should never go unseen. Your mental health will always matter. You deserve to get the help you need. Reaching out is the best thing you can do but always make sure you talk to someone you trust.