promotion
Understand the different views ont he nature of mental well-being and mental-health
and the factors that may influence both across the life span
1.1 Evaluate two different views on the nature of mental well-being and mental health
According to the World Health Organisation (WHO) ’s definition, mental health is not just the
absence of mental disorders or disabilities, but an integral and essential component of health.
Therefore, there is no health without mental health.
Mental health is defined as ’a state of well-being in which an individual realizes his or her
own abilities, can cope with the normal stresses of life, can work productively and is able to
make a contribution to his or her community.’ 1
Under Mind’s and Verywell Mind’s website, mental health is about caring for and about
yourself; additionally, it refers to an individual’s cognitive and emotional well-being.
Good mental health means that you can think, feel and behave in the ways that you need and
want to live your life. It involves loving yourself and looking after your physical health. It
means that you need to eat well, drink enough water, sleep enough and well, do regular
exercises and enjoy yourself. Moreover, it is about having positive self-esteem, building and
maintaining good relationships with others, and seeing yourself as being a valuable person
who is satisfied with his/her life and useful member of the society.
If it is changing and you go through a period when these things become difficult, you may
believe that you have no control over your life, or feel that any decision you make is wrong,
or simply you cannot cope with these difficult situations. Also, you may often experience as
bad feeling as in the case of a physical illness.
Poor mental health can affect your daily functioning, physical health, family and other
relationships as well as the ability to enjoy your life.
A world health report says that approximately one in four people will be affected by mental
health problems in the world during their lives.
However, many people do not have a diagnosable mental illness some are indeed mentally
healthier than others.
Summarising, the negative approach on the nature of mental well-being and mental health is
that mental health is simply absences of mental disorders, while the positive view is that
health and well-being are interlaced and continuous work is needed to maintain health.