Mental health is not just the absence of mental illness, but instead describes the emotional, psychological, and social layers of our overall well-being. It allows us to persevere when we’re buffeted by daily stressors. Alongside physical health, good mental health enables us to learn and work effectively, contribute to our families and communities, form relationships, and experience the full range of human emotions. We all may face mental health challenges—even if we don’t have mental health disorders.
Our mental health is the result of many factors, including our genetics, support system, exercise, rest, nutrition, and life situation. But mental illness remains stigmatized in the US. Though most Americans say having a mental illness is nothing to be ashamed of, 35% of US adults say they’d view someone differently if they knew that person had a mental health disorder. By one recent count, mental illness costs the US economy an estimated $282B annually.
Interest in mental well-being dates back to Hippocrates and the ancient Greek ideal of maintaining a healthy mind in a healthy body. But modern mental health’s official precursor—called “mental hygiene,” in 1843 by American psychiatrist William Sweetzer—paralleled the idea of attending to personal physical hygiene. It suggested that individuals needed to somehow maintain their mental well-being as they would their personal cleanliness, and thus mental health disorders were avoidable. Public outreach to help people sustain or improve their mental well-being didn’t begin in earnest until decades later.
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