Promoting Mental Health and Wellbeing Among Older People

MENTAL HEALTH AND WELLBEING 1
PROMOTING MENTAL HEALTH AND WELLBEING BETWEEN OLDER PEOPLE
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MENTAL HEALTH AND WELLBEING 2
The success of every activity depends on human beings capacity to organize and conduct it in an
excellent manner. A person can only do organization and profound work with good mental
health. Therefore, mental health is an aspect of the life of everyone to be able to do good work.
The essay focuses on all matters that pertain mental health, wellbeing, mental ill health, and
happiness for older people. Also, interventions for mental health, as well as benefits of mental
health cause mental health problems in the United Kingdom policy on mental health and
wellbeing.
World health organization defines health as a state of complete physical, mental and social well-
being and not merely the absence of diseases or infirmity (Beam, and Kohane, 2018). Thus,
mental health is the level of cognitive wellness or psychological wellbeing where an individual
can function in a satisfactory manner of emotional and behavioral changes. Mental health entails
a person’s ability to enjoy life as well as living a balanced life between activities and effort to
attain psychological resilience.
World health organization describes mental health according to the following characteristics like
competency, self- the actualization of one’s emotional potential and intellectual, perceived self-
efficacy, and inter-generational dependence (Ioannidis, 2019). The UK surgeon explains mental
health as a successful enactment of mental function, yielding productive activities, satisfying
relationship with other individuals and offering the capability to cope with change and adversity.
Older people aged 60 and above make vital contributions to the community like family members,
active members in the labour force as well as volunteers. Although most possess good mental
health, several older people are at danger of developing mental problems like substance use
difficulties, neurological disorders and additional health conditions like osteoarthritis, diabetes

MENTAL HEALTH AND WELLBEING 3
and hearing loss. Similarly, as individuals get older, they tend to experience many health
problems at the same time during old age (Friedman et al., 2019).
Mental health affects our thinking and the manner of performing our normal life duties. When
the mind cannot function to a satisfactory level due to some disorders we refer to that condition
as mental illness. Mental illness term put together all types of mental disorders that are
diagnosably characterized by changing of mood, thinking, and feeling as well as impaired
functioning (Stuart, Sartorius, and Thornicroft, 2019). The mental disorder also known as the
psychiatric disorder has features such as remitting, persistent, and relapse or sometimes it can
appear as a single episode. An individual with mental illness has a distinct experience even to
them who have the same diagnosis.
Wellbeing is a positive result which is meant for individuals as well as many aspects of
community or nation (Oades, 2019). Wellbeing reveals to us that individuals perceive that their
lives are progressing well. For instance, best living conditions in terms of employment, housing,
and ability to cater to all essential needs of life are fundamental to well-being.
Well-being combines mental health and physical health leading to more holistic tactics towards
diseases prevention and health promotion. Studies reveal that wellbeing is associated with
productivity, health behaviours, self-perceived health, and social connectedness. Also, it involves
all aspects of the social and physical environment as well as physical and mental illness.
Wellbeing is a usable population result examined beyond mortality, morbidity and economic
status which informs us about people perception towards how their life progresses (Kenbubpha,
Higgins, Wilson, and Chan, 2019).

MENTAL HEALTH AND WELLBEING 4
Happiness is a term used in the context of emotional and mental state, involving positive or
pleasing feelings ranging from gladness to extreme joy. Happiness also is used in circumstance
of wellbeing, life contentment, subjective wellbeing and flourishing. Happiness depends on how
satisfied one is with lifelike finding the meaning of one’s work and the feeling daily (Goldberg,
L., 2018).
There are several characteristics of happy people such as being optimistic, creative, have a
spiritual foundation, and they mostly tend to live a very balanced life. Additionally, happy
people are extroverted, sense of individual control, love for themselves and have a close
relationship with others. Studies prove that with increases in age, happiness tends to reduce to all
individuals.
The UK policy on mental health gives a statutory direction on strict interventions for individuals
acquiring treatment for a mental disorder in a health institution. The mental health act 1983
guidelines are as follows (Miyabayashi et al., 2019):
Preventive interventions are deliberate actions on the side of other individuals that hinder patient
movement, freedom, and liberty to perform independently to: Terminate or minimize the threat
to the patient or others significantly. Also, to take an instantaneous control of a threat condition
in case of the real possibility of harm to the patient or another individual if restraint is not done.
According to the policy, aging is a period of diminishing mental and physical abilities, where
cognitive aging is perceived as another stage of life. Some individuals age in a better way than
others and they may identify new and best favourable life as they age. However, aging comes
with the risk of serious mental state, involving anxiety, depression, and dementia a time
psychosis that needs keen attention as the society ages (Lund et al., 2019).