Common mental health problems
Information and resources about common mental health problems
Last updated 21 February 2024.
Everyone can feel stressed, low, anxious at some point in their lives, often in reaction to negative situations or circumstances. But if these feelings become so frequent or severe that they negatively affect our ability to go about our every day lives, our sleep and relationships, then they may have become a mental health problem.
The majority of mental health problems are called 'common' because combined, they affect more people than other more severe/enduring mental health problems. Around 1 in 6 people report experiencing a common mental health problem (like anxiety and depression) in any given week in England.
The most frequently occurring mental health problems are mixed anxiety and depression, generalised anxiety disorder (GAD), post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression and phobias.
Most people recover from common mental health problems, – especially after accessing help or support. Your symptoms may never return or may return from time to time, but when you've discovered which self help techniques, services and treatments work best for you, you're more likely to feel confident in managing them.
Anxiety is when we feel worried, tense or afraid, usually about things which are about to happen or we think may happen in the future. Anxiety is a normal and healthy response experienced by everyone at one time or another when we think we are under threat.
The symptoms of anxiety can include:
- Physical ones like difficulty breathing, feeling faint, racing heart, chest pains, numbness, headaches, the need to go to the toilet or feeling sick. Some of these are the body preparing for action in the face of a threat (for example, to run away or fight)
- Thoughts and feelings like poor concentration, circling thoughts, fears, unhelpful thinking, and loss of self-confidence
- Behaviours like avoiding doing things or avoiding social or certain situations.
Common mental health problems
Everyone can feel down at times in their lives (often linked with difficult life events or circumstances, for example relationship breakdown, bereavement, health problems, debt). If feeling down is something that becomes prolonged, keeps coming back frequently or gets worse so that it negatively affects your work, interests or feelings towards your family/friends, or your ability to go about your every day life, then it could be a sign of depression.
Some of the symptoms of depression are low mood or sadness, loss of interest or pleasure, less energy, sleep disturbances, change in appetite, difficulty concentrating, loss of self-confidence, slowed functioning (for example thinking or talking), lower sex drive, thoughts of death or suicide and feeling guilty.
If you or someone you know is at breaking point or crisis and is experiencing suicidal thoughts, it is important to seek help urgently, by: calling the Surrey Crisis Line on 0800 915 4644, calling 999, going to A&E, or to a Safe Haven in Epsom, Redhill, Guildford, Woking Aldershot (open evenings and weekends and also available as Virtual Safe Havens online).
There are many reasons why people get depressed, including: difficult life circumstances or events (for example financial problems or debt, relationship breakdown, bereavement and long term health conditions), traumatic experiences, genetic predisposition, world events like the pandemic - depression affected almost twice as many adults during the pandemic as before the pandemic, on-going stress or negative core beliefs such as 'I'm not good enough'. Depression is often caused by a combination of these factors.
Some people see depression as a sign of weakness or of not being strong enough to cope. However, this is not true. Admitting that things are not going well is not a sign of weakness, but rather a sign of bravery and strength and is the beginning of finding a way through it and learning to tackle our problems.
The fact is, low mood affects nearly everyone, male or female at some point in their lives and. However, most people are able to overcome or cope with low mood and depression, often with support (whether this be self-help or support from family and friends or from community or health services).
Many people who have experienced depression and low mood, emerge with more tools to help them in the future and can feel stronger and more resilient as a result.
There are some things we know can help low mood and depression:
- Keeping active – physical activity is proven to improve mood and reduce the risk of depression. Especially activity outside in green spaces
- Practicing self-care – be kind to yourself (avoid harsh self-talk and judgements), incorporate one or two things that make you happy into your day
- Exploring and challenging your low mood – a mood diary can help you identify what makes you feel better or worse. Try challenging unhelpful thinking – the NHS has a good audio guide on this
- Looking after yourself – eat healthily, get enough sleep, avoid excessive alcohol and caffeine, and if you smoke, consider quitting smoking as research shows it can improve mood and relieve depression.
NHS Every Mind Matters can give you personalised advice via a Mind Plan and has information, tips on how to improve your mood and a video on low mood and depression.
Useful contacts
- Surrey Recovery College offers interactive workshops on Understanding Depression and Anxiety
- Surrey's Talking Therapies can help you if you feel that depression is having a negative effect on your mood and mental wellbeing. You can access these services yourself or ask a GP or health professional to refer you.
- Surrey Community Connections offers 1 to 1 support to develop coping skills, support groups and activities to help improve wellbeing and manage mental health. You can access these services yourself or ask a GP or health professional to refer you.
- Surrey wellbeing events – has online and in person activities and support sessions to help with low mood and depression (e.g. mindfulness, resilience, wellbeing walks)
- NHS website has information and advice, and an audio guide on low mood and depression.
- The Mind website provides more information about depression. You will be able to find a downloadable leaflet with further information about what depression is, what the symptoms and causes are, treatment available and what friends and family can do to help.
- The Royal College of Psychiatrists has information about what depression feels like, help that is available, how you can help yourself and how to help someone who is depressed.
Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) is an anxiety disorder that can cause significant distress and have a negative impact on everyday life. OCD symptoms can range in severity from mild to severe.
OCD has two main parts: Obsession and compulsions:
- Obsessions are unwelcome thoughts, images, urges, worries or doubts that repeatedly appear in someone's mind. They can make you feel very anxious or uncomfortable.
- Compulsions are repetitive actions done to reduce the anxiety caused by the obsession. It could be something like repeatedly checking a door is locked, repeating a specific phrase in your head or repeatedly washing your hands. Whilst these compulsive actions offer temporary relief, when the obsessive thoughts return, the compulsion to carry out the action is much stronger and people can feel trapped in a vicious cycle.
Some people can spend up to one hour a day carrying out their obsessive-compulsive thinking and behaviour, whereas other people can be affected for longer, to the point where it has taken over their lives.
People with OCD will recognise that the behaviour is irrational but they feel unable to control their thoughts or change their compulsive behaviours. Often people suffering with OCD will delay getting help (which can be linked to feelings of shame). But it is important to recognise that seeking help is actually a sign of strength.
There are a range of support, services and treatments available to help manage and improve symptoms of OCD.
Useful contacts:
- Surrey's Talking Therapies provide support and treatment for OCD and you can self-refer to these services.
- The Mind website provides more information and a downloadable leaflet about Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD). Explaining what obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is, including possible causes and how you can access treatment and support. Includes tips for helping yourself, and guidance for friends and family.
- The Royal College of Psychiatrists website and printable leaflet provide more information about obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), including signs, symptoms and how to help yourself or get help.
- National charities:
Sometimes, a small amount of stress can help us to complete tasks and feel more energised. Short periods of mild stress is not always a bad thing, some people enjoy the pressure and are motivated by it.
Negative stress can be described as how we feel and react when the demands or pressure on us exceeds our own perceived ability to cope. Stress can come both from inside ourselves (for example wanting to succeed) and from external events (for example work pressures, financial, relationship or health problems).
Although we often cannot control stressful events, the good news is that we can control our reactions to it. The amount of stress we feel is often due to the importance we place on the event or situation, our beliefs about ourselves, our thoughts about the situation, how we are feeling emotionally and our resilience.
If we do not react well to stress and or it is very intense or prolonged, it can negatively affect our physical wellbeing and our emotional and mental well-being. It can then increase the risk of anxiety and depression and can worsen or be a trigger for other mental health conditions.
Common symptoms of stress include:
- Cognitive symptoms: concentration and memory problems, muddled thinking, racing thoughts
- Emotional symptoms: agitation, anxiety, low confidence and self-esteem, loneliness,
- Physical symptoms: headaches, muscle tension, digestive problems, recurrent minor illnesses and insomnia (as stress can lower our immune system function)
- Behavioural changes: changes in eating, and sleeping patterns and using alcohol, cigarettes or drugs to cope
It can be helpful to identify your triggers for stress, as a first step in helping to reduce or manage stress. And knowing what your capacity for managing stress is.
The 'Stress jug' analogy
We each have a certain capacity for managing stress (and this can differ between people). Imagine that all your stress was in a jug. The fuller your jug is, the greater the symptoms of your stress will be. Once the jug is full, your ability to manage any situation that arises is greatly compromised, resulting in feeling unable to manage something that would not normally affect you. Some of your jug is already filled with the anxieties of life that we cannot avoid (for example, money, illness or family problems). If you partially empty your jug on a daily basis, you can avoid it over-flowing, which will help you reduce your symptoms and to feel more in control. It may be that you are unable to change the main contributor to your stress, but if you can do something about your other sources of stress, you will feel better able to cope. Mental Health UK has a visual example and worksheet.
Self-help tips for managing stress (emptying the stress jug) includes two approaches.
Managing external pressures:
- Make a list of things you need to do, identify your most productive time of day and start with the most urgent and important items. If needed, ask for help to prioritise them and see if some items can be pushed back to when you are feeling less stressed, or passed to others
- Focus on one thing at a time and shut out distraction (like phone or email notifications)
- Take regular breaks, move around, get some fresh air - it will help your concentration
- Vary your activities, balancing those you find stressful with some easier ones
- Ask someone to help you with stressful tasks or with daily tasks to give you more time
Developing internal resilience, to help build up your skills to cope with stress:
- Practice communicating your needs and setting boundaries – having a sense of control can help reduce stress
- Try using mindfulness techniques – they can help you notice signs of stress earlier – breathing exercises and relaxation techniques can help reduce stress
- Doing some physical activity or exercise (especially outdoors in a green space or nature) can help reduce the stress hormones in your body and make you feel calmer and relaxed
- Drink more water, reduce caffeine and sugar intake (try swapping them for decaffeinated or herbal teas and healthy snacks)
- Give yourself a break, balance your time not just on stressful tasks but on things you enjoy
- Build your support network and make time for friends, family and colleagues. Social support is an effective way to reduce the effects of stress.
Useful contacts:
- NHS Every Mind Matters has helpful support and information to help deal with stress and you can make a personalised action plan. The NHS also lists 10 Stress Busters
- The Mind website has information on how to manage stress, explaining what stress is, what may cause stress, how it can affect you and where you can access support.
- Surrey Talking Therapies provide one to one, online and group support for people who are experiencing mild to moderate mental ill-health, including stress.
Medication
There are many types of medication you can take to improve mental illness. It is important to know about your medication and what the side effects may be. For more information visit the Surrey Choice and Medication website.
The Mind website provides more information on psychiatric medication. Explaining what psychiatric drugs are, what to know before taking them, information on side effects and details on coming off medication
Useful Contacts
There are various self help techniques, resources and tools that can help you manage common mental health problems.
There are a range of services in Surrey that can help you with support and treatment for common mental health problems – including NHS Talking Therapies for anxiety and depression.
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Sleep
Tips on how you can improve sleep and useful contacts.
Useful links
- Mental health issues - Every Mind Matters - helps create a personalised mind plan for you.