Mental health is just as important as physical health and needs to be taken seriously as it can impact all aspects of life. Mental health awareness is important to understand mental illnesses and poor mental health.  Mental health affects how we think, feel, and act. Mental health is often brushed off in school and workplaces because it may not be as visible as a physical illness to most. 

Mental illness can affect anyone at any age and regardless of past experiences. Mental illness, although it can be caused by trauma and other significant events, can also be a chemical imbalance in the brain. It is essential to end the stigma around talking about mental health and encourage people to get help because if it is not talked about more, people are unable to get help and may not understand why they are feeling the way they do. 

Mental health is important in all stages of life. Mental illness and poor mental health are not the same, although maintaining a healthy mental state is essential to our everyday lives. Mental health awareness is able to bring a better understanding to how mental illness affects people’s everyday life.

“Many people think mental health is a joke, and many people do not take time to take care of it because of the stigma around it,” Nadia Luna, freshman, said. 

Mental health awareness is important in schools because mental health affects social life and emotional well-being. According to the CDC, nearly 42% of students report feeling persistently sad and hopeless. According to HHS.gov, it is estimated 49.5 percent of students have poor mental health at some point. 

“I feel like we should have mental health awareness in school because people do not always know what other people are going through, and I feel as if we should have counselors at school because I feel like people should always have someone to talk to when they need it.” Ana Trahan, sophomore, said. 

Mental health is important for all parts of life and everybody needs to be aware of their own mental health and more places need to take mental health into consideration. Having good mental health can improve life.