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Why is Mental Health Education in Schools is So Important?
By Joe McLean
With the prevalence of mental health issues in our society, it’s astounding that we still tend to stigmatize mental illness. Many mental health misconceptions still exist. Because mental health issues often begin during the school-age years, it’s becoming more and more apparent that mental health education needs to start at an early age. Because children spend so much of their daily life at school, it seems logical that this is where mental health education should begin.
Some facts about mental illness
Millions of people globally are affected by mental illness. In America, an estimated one in five adults experiences mental illness in a given year, according to the National Alliance on Mental Health. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that one in five children in the U.S. currently have, or at some stage have had, a debilitating mental illness. Fifty percent of mental illness begins by the age of 14, according to the American Psychiatric Association.
Depression is on the rise
Mental illness, particularly depression, is predicted to become one of the major health burdens in the future. The World Health Organization (WHO) states that depression is the leading cause of…
