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Many educators, school teachers and parents are guilty of branding children who perform badly in their academics as stupid or lazy. Parents and teachers become harsher to the student and puts more pressure on them to do better, often not even willing to hear out their side of the story. Learning difficulty is defined as difficulties in acquiring knowledge and skills to the normal level expected of those of the same age, especially because of mental disability or cognitive disorder. It can affect the way they develop reading, writing, and math skills. Dyslexia, Dysgraphia, Dyscalculia are some of the common learning difficulties. If a child does indeed have a learning difficulty, the copious amounts of pressure put on them and the strictness imposed upon them would only be counterproductive and would only add more to their problem. Children with learning difficulties is more at risk of mental health problems than the children who does not have any kind learning difficulties. People with Learning disabilities are reported to have mental illnesses like anxiety and depression. Since people around them are harsher to them or ridicules them for their inability to be “smart”, they also seem to experience low self-esteem and are often not very social. They are also more at risk of being bullied or isolated due to fear of rejection. Having a learning difficulty does not mean the child is stupid, many of the people who does have a learning difficulty is above average in intelligence. They just need a different approach towards education, with therapy and support they will have the ability to overcome their problems.

Did you know that 300 million people world wide suffer from depression and that around 800,000 of them succumb to suicide? Despite being such a massive problem, people around the world are still afraid or ashamed to talk about this important topic. There is so much ignorance and misinformation out there in the world that a significant amount of people suffering from depression themselves do not know that they have this illness. Depression is not the feeling of occasional sadness that we all feel when we fail an exam or get rejected after an interview. Depression is one of the most common mental illnesses that is characterized by persistent sadness or loss of interest that will affect your feelings, thoughts and actions in a damaging way. A person suffering from depression may experience symptoms like agitation, excessive crying, feeling worthless or guilty, irritability, excess sleepiness or trouble sleeping, loss of energy, thoughts of death or suicide, lack of concentration etc. One may simply feel too much or they may feel completely hollow and empty inside. It is not just excess sadness that is experienced by people who are grieving a loved one’s death or a loss of a relationship, sometimes it is completely replaced by a feeling of nothingness. Prolonged sense of emptiness can be a telling symptom of depression but it is much harder to realise and detect.

Anxiety

Not to be confused with the anxiousness that you feel when you are about to perform in front of an audience or facing your parents when you have broken your curfew. Anxiety disorder is characterized by feelings of worry, anxiety or fear that are strong enough to negatively impact different aspects of your life and is often associated with panic attacks. A person suffering from Anxiety Disorder experiences restlessness, racing thoughts, excessive worry that cannot be pushed aside or overlooked, palpitations, nausea etc. People have reported feeling a sense of impending doom without a valid cause. Anxiety disorders and the cocktail of symptoms accompanying it can impair a person’s ability to live normally in society as it can affect a student’s academic life as well as the work life of an adult. People can be excessively worried about even trivial things like walking across the a crowded room or a test that they are already well prepared for. Anxiety and depression also seems to go hand in hand, making it a doubly vicious threat in a persons life. Although over 10 million cases are reported in India, acknowledgement of the topic let alone the prospect of treatment is brushed under the rug in many societies. The affected person more often than not are told to simply stop worrying. This can become increasingly difficult to live with if proper treatments are not given at the right time.

Reflection and introspection can be highly helpful in an individual’s life. It helps you analyse your thoughts, actions or mistakes and make better decisions in the future, helping you grow as a person. But when you overly obsess or worry about a particular aspect for too long, it can become unhealthy and affect your life in a less than desirable manner. It can cause you emotional distress, puts pressure on you and is completely unproductive. Overthinking is not classified as a disorder as such but it does seem to indicate the presence of other mental disorders like depression, anxiety, post-traumatic stress and borderline personality disorder. When you obsess about a lost opportunity, you are throwing away the time and energy that could help you find other better opportunities. Overthinking can sometimes completely consume your life, it can give you sleeping troubles, mess with your appetite and isolate you from your peers and loved ones. When you always think about the absolute worst outcomes all the time, instead of preparing for those scenarios you might just feel exhausted and give up all together. Overthinking can make you seem like you are trying too hard or least bothered which doesn’t come across as a good trait during social interactions. Obsessing over what others think about you, an unfortunate scenario that you saw on TV and now you believe is going to happen to you, the racing questions in your mind about all the ‘what ifs’ that you can possibly think of, they all work as an unhealthy distraction that keeps you away from thinking about and doing things that actually matter at present time. If you do often feel overwhelmed by your own thoughts, it is strongly advised that you talk to someone and get the necessary help needed.

No, it is not just something that happens to menopausal women or exclusive to younger women who experience Premenstrual syndrome unlike what sitcoms would have you believe. Everyone experiences mood swings, even men. So what are mood swings? It’s pretty self explanatory, it is the abrupt change in mood or emotional state. You may experience immense joy in one moment and then be filled with crippling sadness the next. The wild tide that you feel like you are on will be filled with different emotions like anger, happiness, self pity, resentment which can make you confused and disoriented. Mood swings could be the light changes in mood that you can ignore otherwise or the type that is quite worrying and is associated with other mood disorders like bipolar disorder, schizoaffective disorder and personality disorders. If you do experience mood swings, do not diagnose yourself with the above mentioned mental disorders as your hormones play big role in this too. Moodiness can be a very annoying thing for women who is going through PMS or Menopause. Even women who are pregnant are reported to be moody during the gestation period. Since men are less likely go through the hormonal cycle like women do, they may have a different reason for their mood swings such as Drug or alcohol abuse, unhealthy diet, stress, diabetes, thyroid disorders or even certain medications. When your mood swing starts to obstruct your life it’s a sign that you need to take a good look at your health, both mental and physical. If listening to cheerful music, going for a walk or dietary changes is simply not working for you, it’s time to make an appointment with a mental health professional.