Mental health is a person’s condition concerning their psychological and emotional well-being.

It
affects people's physical and mental state, and in some cases can be extremely severe.
Worldwide, 1 in 5 young people, aged 11-25, struggle with mental illnesses daily. Studies show
it is hard for adolescents to reach out for help and many do not feel comfortable talking about
their mental health. According to the Mission Australia and Black Dog Institute, (2017). Youth
Mental Health Report, "Those with higher levels of risk of mental health problems are more
likely to seek help from the internet, suggesting that stigma and fear of being judged continue to
inhibit help-seeking."
People are embarrassed to ask for help face to face due to the idea of discrimination they may
receive. The most common mental health illness and disorders in young people are anxiety,
depression and attention deficit and eating disorders. Due to the high amount of stress
adolescents are put under, illnesses like anxiety make it very tough to go to school or see
friends.

The Australian government, much like others worldwide, seems to neglect the reality that mental
health education is extremely poor. Half of all mental illnesses develop by the age of fourteen.
By 24, more than 3/4 of all mental illnesses have been triggered. Men, women and persons are
most vulnerable during adolescence so much so, mental illness is becoming all too common
during this age. Fortunately according to Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. (2020).
Mental health services in Australia, $9.9 billion, or $400 per person, was spent on mental
health-related services in Australia during 2017–18. In comparison, in 2013-14, $382 per person
was budgeted by the government. In 2017-18, 7.6% of government health expenditure was
spent on mental health-related services which is slowly improving from year to year. People
suffering from extreme mental health issues are seen as 'whack jobs' or 'nut cases' and not as
people with an illness. This lack of training and teaching leads to two-thirds of those with mental
disorders never getting treatment. Fear of judgement and discrimination, as well as neglect, are
all by-products of misunderstanding. Mental health normalisation starts with education and
awareness that must be implemented at the appropriate time. This is not an issue that only
affects a minority group but affects everyone. For instance, at this school, you could expect
almost every student to know of a person suffering from a severe mental illness. Worldwide
priority is often placed on large, widespread issues such as refugees and not on an issue which
has become so boundless that it now affects people globally, refugees, for instance, would also
experience mental illness especially PTSD. No group of people is exempt from mental illness.

Mental health literacy is the knowledge and beliefs about mental disorders which aid their
recognition, management and/or prevention. It means not telling young people that their issues
are normal and not a problem. It recognises the real difficulties in mental health and how those
affected (adolescents) can manage it. Mental health literacy in a school environment is
extremely beneficial as it involves the students, teachers and parents talking about sensitive
issues in a safe place. These groups are often recognised as the main support system for
young people struggling with mental illness. ​It is often difficult for people, especially teenagers,
to recognise mental health symptoms for themselves let alone others. This can lead to certain
disorders and illnesses progressively getting worse and worse until it becomes debilitating.
Learning how to not only recognise symptoms in yourself and others but also being able to talk
to someone is becoming a very important skill. According to the Medical Journal of Australia,
"Young adults (18–25 years) were better able to identify depression than adolescents, as were
young women compared with young men..." With age, emotional intelligence does improve but it
is the adolescents that desperately need more knowledge. Earlier education would dramatically
decrease the number of untreated cases.

I acknowledge that the school does attempt to introduce mental health literacy through Healthy
Minds and wellbeing classes. Students don't always take these classes seriously or care about
what is being said. Healthy Minds was a great program for us to partake in as the information
being delivered was extremely valuable but I don't believe even half the girls could remember
what was taught. The program although taught students helpful thinking skills, did not teach
students about mental illnesses and disorders, how to receive help from others or how to help
someone with a mental illness. Students couldn't connect to a middle-aged woman teaching us
from a PowerPoint as if it were another class. No one wanted to listen let alone actually
understand and hear what was being said. The content being taught was similar to what would
be taught from a professional counsellor or psychologist so why were the students not
recognising the value behind the lessons?

It is common for an adolescent to resist help or information if it is being forced upon them and
this may lead them not wanting to listen or learn, simply because they are being forced to. It is
difficult to decide whether or not to make it a requirement for a student to undergo the mental
health literacy course or to make it optional. If people are forced to do it and they are not
interested, it causes resentment and unwillingness to complete the course. But by making it
optional, many people may choose not to do the course and this possibly will lead to only a
small amount doing it. The benefits of mental health literacy, if completed successfully, are
astounding and is the knowledge that you will have forever. Understanding how our brain reacts
to our environment and certain situations is just as important as how our body does, yet it is still
neglected. We can enforce as many courses and programs as we want but how can we ensure
teenagers take something away from it?

There are quite a few different mental health literacy courses that are perfect to use in the
school environment. The PEP (peer education project) created by the Mental Health Foundation
is designed to have elected older students to teach younger students the program. I believe this
will be more engaging than other programs such as Healthy Minds as the students can relate
better to peers teaching them rather than an adult or teacher. According to a year 7 student, "I
think it was easier that they were close to our age – they understood our feelings a bit more." It
includes staff training where staff members attend a training session in how to deliver the
project, covering the key concepts, project structure and materials. By training staff to deliver
the project in their schools, the project aims to ensure schools can run the project each year.
Student leaders are then selected to supervise the classes and provided with the necessary
knowledge needed. Working in pairs, the trained Peer Educators deliver the five, separate
hour-long lessons to Year 7's. Pupils receive a workbook containing key information and
worksheets for each lesson. This program can be trialled at any time and although it is
recommended for year 7 students, it would be successful with any junior year.

As you can see, youth mental health in youth has become an extremely important issue and
there are ways that we as a school community can help. My proposal for implementing the Peer
Education Program is one that is well suited to the school and will improve the overall wellbeing
of students and teachers. Through understanding how difficult it is to not only struggle with a
mental illness but also be a teenager, we as a community can help in more effective ways.
Tailoring programs, especially for young people, means information and support are not only
reaching them but being received positively. Together we can help improve the overall mental
health and provide support which has the flow-on effect of better support and likelihood of harm
reduction

Bibliography:

Mental Health Organisation. (n.d.). Peer Education Project (PEP). Retrieved from
https://www.mentalhealth.org.uk/projects/peer-education-project-pep

Kelly, C., Jorm, A. & Wright, A. (2007). Improving mental health literacy as a strategy to facilitate
early intervention for mental disorders. Retrieved from
https://www.mja.com.au/journal/2007/187/7/improving-mental-health-literacy-strategy-facilitate-e
arly-intervention-mental​.

Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. (2020). Mental health services in Australia. Retrieved
from
https://www.aihw.gov.au/reports/mental-health-services/mental-health-services-in-australia/repo
rt-contents/summary/prevalence-and-policies​.

Mission Australia and Black Dog Institute, (2017). Youth Mental Health Report. Retrieved from
https://blackdoginstitute.org.au/docs/default-source/research/evidence-and-policy-section/2017-
youth-mental-health-report_mission-australia-and-black-dog-institute.pdf?sfvrsn=6​.

Healey, J. (n.d.). Youth mental health / edited by Justin Healey. Retrieved from
https://chalk.loreto.nsw.edu.au/send.php?id=51245​.