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The days are meant to be easy. All hours should be shaped to laughter; all moments should be offered grins. Life has favored you with a collection of successes and relationships — all of which are meant to fulfill your every need. They… don’t, however. Instead you find yourself underwhelmed by all that’s been offered. No accomplishment is sweet enough to tempt a smile. No friend can summon the necessary sympathy. Your emotions have been stripped to apathetic cores, and you don’t understand why.

The reason is — sadly — that you’re not as you once were. There are instead symptoms that must be defined and treated, as well as the need to gain an understanding of mental health and how it has impacted your existence.

Mental health is a term that too often baffles the common man. It’s assumed to reflect the physical state of the brain, to prove the dysfunction of veins and gray matter. The truth, however, is far more involving.

This is instead a comprehensive term that reflects an individual’s cognitive and emotional functions — with all disorders, diseases and concerns accounted for. It is meant to explain the functions of the mind, as well as the psychological strains that can occur.

Achieving good mental health therefore demands an understanding of warning signs — with extended (or at least frequent) bouts of depression, skewered self-esteem and suicidal thoughts all noted. Ignoring these problems will not somehow solve them. Instead it will simply worsen the condition and leave individuals vulnerable to other complications.

Mental health must be redefined with treatment and medication, and its symptoms must be supported.