What is Mental Health?

Mental health and well-being includes our emotional, psychological, and social well-being. It affects how we think, feel, and act. It also helps determine how we handle stress, relate to others, and make everyday choices. Mental health is important at every stage of life, from childhood and adolescence through adulthood. http://www.mentalhealth.gov/

Mental health is a spectrum. In the same way that every individual experiences physical health as a continuum from ‘well’ to ‘ill’, every individual has a mental health experience. As with physical health, mental health changes at different points in individuals’ lives based on both biological and environmental factors. Many young people enjoy mental wellness, meaning that they have positive regard for themselves, enjoy positive relationships with the people who are important to them, and are generally resilient when faced with challenges in their lives at home and school.

Coping with mental health concerns negatively impacts young people’s ability to meet the many demands of school, including cognitive demands for learning; social and emotional demands for making friends and behaving according to school rules, norms, and expectations; and physical demands for being active throughout the school day.

St. Johns County School District’s Mental Health & Wellness website is designed to provide a wide variety of educational and community resources available to students, staff, and the community to support positive change, reduce stigma and develop the capacity of all stakeholders to engage in wellness.

Facts About Mental Health

  • Mental health affects everyone regardless of culture, race, ethnicity or gender
  • Nearly 44 million adults experience mental health illness in a given year
  • One in five children ages 13 – 18 have or will have a serious mental health illness

Things Parents can do When Concerned About Mental Health

  • Talk with your child’s pediatrician
  • Get a referral to a mental health professional
  • Learn more about mental illness
  • Work with the school
  • Connect with other individuals and families
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