Mental health, today, encompasses the psychological, emotional and social well-being of the person. It also defines how a human being manages to handle stress, how it is related and how he makes decisions. As published by PlantaDoce, an economic journal of the health business, on January 26, 2023, more than 13% of young people suffer from some type of mental health disorder, that is, 1 in 7 adolescents between the ages of 10 and 19 years. As mental disorders, at this age, anxiety and depression can be highlighted. In addition, the World Health Organization, on November 17, 2021, said that suicide, to this day, has become the fourth leading cause of death for young people between the ages of 19 and 25, which tells us It leads to say that one in every 100 deaths is by suicide. From our point of view, it is necessary to treat mental disorders as well as physical ones so that in the future young people with these diseases do not have more problems as they approach adulthood.
The psychologist Eduardo Bensabat Silva, from the International Association of the Telephone of Hope (ASITES) has allowed us to ask him certain questions about mental health in young people and these have been his answers:
What are the most frequent mental health disorders in young people in Malaga today?
The majority of disorders that young people present today are depression, any type of anxieties such as, for example, food anxieties or anxieties caused by the issue of expectations, numerous concerns that young people express that we do not take into account but that are there and make these more serious problems worsen.
What do you think is the trigger for these disorders in young people?
Most of the cases are produced by deficient emotional regulation. The problem of working emotions without having tools to manage emotional pain, felt by young people who suffer from mental health disorders, causes them to feel a lack of support, therefore, internalizing emotions often leads to these depressions , anxieties.
What leads young people (from Malaga) to have self-injurious behaviors and suicidal thoughts?
Emotional regulation is also the cause of these behaviors and thoughts. In the end, when a self-injurious crisis occurs and the person injures himself, what is happening is that they use physical pain to replace emotional pain, since they have no other tools to deal with it.
Is there a way to prevent these disorders?
There are many ways to prevent these disorders, the main way to prevent them is to work on self-esteem, emotional intelligence and start talking about emotions and feelings.
What do people with these types of mental disorders feel?
We cannot know precisely what people with this type of disorder feel since the feeling of each one is very individual and personal, but, in general, these people have feelings of uselessness, loneliness, they usually have a negative vision of themselves. and the world and above all they have a very poor self-esteem. We have to take into account that climate change, war… secondary factors that can affect these people can affect their mood, causing more serious disorders such as depression.
What can young people with these disorders do to feel better about themselves?
To achieve an improvement they must work on self-esteem, this can be done with workshops, the internet, etc. They can also enrich the emotional supports they have such as family, friends or colleagues. It is very important to ask for and accept the help that is offered to us, this seems very simple but for these people it can be something very complicated. Eduardo emphasizes that the internet contains many resources that help to improve and work on many aspects such as self-esteem, emotional intelligence, management of anxiety crises, etc.
Do you think that society fails to empathize with these people and that makes their disorders worse?
Society is increasingly aware that mental health is a serious problem and that it is something that needs to be paid more attention. It must be taken into account that mental health is not a matter of all or nothing, but rather that there are people who have a greater ability to empathize while there are people who find it a little more difficult, but in general society is more aware of these disorders. However, there is still a long way to go.
Have young people’s cases increased after the coronavirus pandemic? if so, why do you think it is?
It is true that there has been an increase in the suicide rate in Spain in recent years, but this is a trend that has already been growing and therefore it is not certain that this increase is due to the coronavirus. But it can be said that the situation of the pandemic affected young people because when they found themselves isolated during the confinement they could not relate to their friends, they could not do the things they liked, later the fear of the pandemic, spending so much time with the mask… These are things that caused the increase in feelings of uselessness or loneliness in young people.
How can friends, peers, or family members help young people close to them with mental health disorders?
Friends, colleagues and family can help these people by offering them a safe place, encouraging the person to express themselves. If we have the intuition that someone is having a bad time, one of the helps is to provide a space in which the person can manifest and can express their feelings and emotions. Another important help is to accompany that person when they are down, learn not to underestimate their problems and pay attention to what they tell you. Many times it is not necessary to say anything, just be with him/her, accompany him/her and listen to him/her without commenting, criticizing or judging.
In Malaga, where and how can you help those who suffer from these disorders? Is the help they provide enough?
El teléfono de la esperanza is one of the associations where you can ask for help, there is also the ANAR foundation focused on children and adolescents. On the other hand, there is 112, which is the emergency telephone number, 061 for health emergencies, and 024, which since last year has been the government’s suicide prevention telephone number. The telephone of hope also has a chat service in operation since March of last year for young people and adolescents who have emotional crises of any kind, called conéctate.social. However, it also serves the most basic things like going to the emergency room, talking with friends, teachers, family. It is important to remember that there is always someone to help you.
