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The Importance Of Knowing Your Mental Health Warning Signs
Managing your mental health can be challenging. Mental health conditions bring on a range of symptoms, not all of which are universal or instantly recognisable.
However, it’s still important to know what these signs and symptoms might look like for you so that you can manage them effectively.
Why is it important to know your mental health warning signs?
Mental health is generally not linear. You may feel well some days and not on others. This variance can make managing your symptoms more complex than other physical conditions.
However, spotting mental health symptoms early can help you manage your feelings and thoughts before they become more serious or long-term issues. Even if your condition is long-term, noticing symptoms sooner rather than later allows you to seek support as soon as possible.
Common mental health warning signs
Everyone’s mental health warning signs are different, so recognising them can be difficult. You might not even realise that you experience certain symptoms. For this reason, it’s essential to know some common signs of poor mental health and how to identify them.
Remember, everyone’s experiences are different. If your mental health is suffering, you may have one of these symptoms or signs or several.
Fatigue
Fatigue and exhaustion are some of the most common signs of poor mental health. Managing everyday tasks and mental health issues quickly becomes tiring. You may find that you’re unable to complete tasks that would typically come easy to you, including work, school, household tasks, exercise or hobbies.
Poor concentration
If your thoughts are preoccupied with anxiety or other negative feelings, you may find it hard to concentrate on even small tasks. This lack of concentration is a normal response to living with mental health problems, but it isn’t generally a healthy way to live. Related signs include poor reading comprehension, unusual mistakes or forgetting things easily.
Appetite Changes
People with mental health difficulties often struggle with eating habits. You may notice a decrease in your appetite or find it difficult to cook. Alternatively, you might find yourself overeating as a coping mechanism or recognise that you can only eat certain things or at certain times of the day.
Sleep Difficulties
Similar to appetite changes, sleep difficulties can go one of two ways. Some people find sleeping next to impossible, as they cannot ‘turn off’ their thoughts and anxieties. Others sleep too much and then find it difficult to get out of bed or complete daily tasks.
It’s important to remember that this sign is a change from what is normal for you. Certain people will always sleep more or less than others – but it may be a sign of poor mental health if your sleeping habits deviate from your norm.
Mood Changes
Mental health conditions can affect all mood types. While mood changes can be tricky to spot because they are different for everyone, some common signs are present in many people, for example:
- Feeling down or depressed
- Crying more than normal
- Feeling irritable or angry
- Feeling apathetic
- Social isolation
Mood changes are not always a sign of poor mental health, but they are a good indicator that something isn’t quite right.
How to spot mental health warning signs
As we’ve said, spotting mental health warning signs can be challenging. Some can come on slowly and fly under the radar, while others might happen suddenly. Everyone is different, so it’s important to know what’s normal for you and what might indicate something is wrong.
For more information on how to identify your warning signs or for support in managing them, please reach out to us at The Fircroft Trust.
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