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care of themselves. Or, a person suffering from anxiety may avoid social situations that could bring them closer to other people and help them develop friendships, because they are fearful of going out or worried about what others are going to think of them. These are only a couple of examples, and not everyone with mental illness will share those feelings. There are also many different types of mental illness besides depression and anxiety, so the experiences of someone with one type of mental health problem may be very different than the experiences of someone else with a different kind of men- tal health concern. 1 Unfortunately, throughout history people with mental illness have often been ignored, shunned, or locked away. It is only in recent decades that open discussion of men- tal health issues has become more common. Today, most people agree that no one should be ashamed of a mental health condition, especially one that they cannot help or control. Even with the shift in thinking, there are still many people who don’t understand mental health issues and who aren’t comfortable around people who have men- tal illness. Helping people to better understand mental health issues will take time and effort. WHY IS MENTAL HEALTH IMPORTANT? Like physical health, mental health matters to the proper functioning of the body, and to overall health and happi- ness. When people struggle with mental health issues and

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Contemporary Issues: Mental Health