Seek support to stop September stress

Oldham national health campaigner Dr Zahid Chauhan is encouraging parents in the town to spot the signs of severe anxiety in their children, in what he calls “the worst month for mental health, September.”

Starting a new college or school, leaving home to attend university, coming to terms with exam results and even the shrinking daylight hours can have an impact on young minds, says Dr Chauhan.

In fact, so concerned are GPs generally, that a pack has just been sent out to doctors across the country to help them identify young people with suicidal thoughts.

“Change can bring with it insecurity, but that mustn’t be allowed to develop into dangerous mental health issues” said Dr Chauhan.

“We need to recognise that young people can be less resilient and that they need a listening ear and plenty of support.

"And if we see symptoms such as drastic weight loss or self-harm, we should seek professional help immediately.”

Dr Chauhan accepts that a myriad of different conditions – from obsessive compulsive disorder to bipolar – exist, but there are common markers to look out for in mental illness, and they include:

• Violent mood swings

• Increased irritability

• Loss of appetite

• Manic behaviour or lethargy plus a lack of interest in things they used to enjoy, and

• Panic attacks

The NHS has a range of initiatives to help people recognise the signs of mental illness.

These include the Moodzone, which is designed for those experiencing these issues or who are worried about a loved one (visit https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/stress-anxiety-depression/) 

Talking therapies including mindfulness are among the free treatment prescribed by NHS medics.

Dr Chauhan said: “A GP’s door is always open to those experiencing mental health problems, not least because we know they can have a huge knock-on effect on a person’s physical health.

The challenge of course, is to get people to seek support in the first place.

"Stigma around mental health has reduced, but with the fast pace of life, money and relationship worries and the pressure piled onto young people to look and behave in a certain way, problems can feel overwhelming.

"That is why we must do more to make young minds healthy and stable, especially at times of upheaval.”

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