What is SMI? With mental health professional, Masira Hans.

I think most of us will have heard the term “mental health” but it can sometimes be more difficult to define what it means…. and why our mental health is so important for our overall wellbeing.

​​Mental health is about our feelings, thinking, emotions and moods. Some of us might struggle more with these things than others, or go through periods of finding them difficult to manage. Some of these people may be diagnosed with a mental health condition such as anxiety, depression, obsessive compulsive disorder…. there are lots of mental health conditions…. and it’s important to know that everyone’s experience is different.

There’s a group of other mental health conditions that we categorise as more “serious.” These conditions are schizophrenia, bipolar and psychosis.

They are considered serious because the symptoms tend be more distressing, typically involving losing touch with reality in some way and are more likely to affect day to day life for the person experiencing them.

There’s absolutely treatment available for anyone and everyone who experiences a serious mental illness - often a combination of medication and therapies. Discovering how to look after your mind is so important for anyone who experiences mental health struggles.

What we’ve learned, and what research has shown us, is that unfortunately people with a diagnosis of these more serious mental health conditions are much more likely to suffer from a physical health conditions as well, such as diabetes, obesity or cardiovascular disease.

This is the greatest health inequality gap within England at the moment. We are aware of the close link between physical and mental health and people shouldn’t be at risk of dying earlier because they have a mental health condition.

Healthcare professionals across Bradford and Craven are coming together to make this change and to improve the physical and mental health of those with a diagnosis of schizophrenia, bipolar and psychosis.

By working together with GPs and other primary care professionals, we want to ensure people attend the health checks they are entitled to, have access to all the information they need and are able to access services that can support them.

Here is Bradford and Craven, we want to see everyone treated equally, regardless of their mental health. A healthy mind promotes a healthy body, and vice versa.

Let’s talk about these inequalities, raise awareness, fight against the stigma and make sure people are heard.

Let’s build strength for our mental health.

[sarahmoghul]

Your programme manager is very intelligent, eloquent and graceful. Thank you for making such informative videos. They are very much needed within our community!