Mental health

Mental health is about our thoughts and feelings, about our relationship with ourselves and those close to us. It is also about our relationship with the society we all are part of.

Mental health is simply about how we feel, whether we enjoy ourselves, people around us, and society.

Another common use of the term mental health is the name of the services offered to people with mental health issues. The area was previously called psychiatry, but in connection with the government's escalation plan for mental health, it was changed. Mental health is now included as part of the name of services in hospitals and municipalities.

In Norway, the definition of mental health is also described as "a state of well-being where the individual can realize his or her opportunities, handle normal stress situations in life, work in a fruitful and productive way and have the opportunity to contribute to others and in society. Good mental health is thus a positive condition - not just the absence of illness and difficulties”.

The World Health Organization (WHO) points out that health has different dimensions, such as physical, mental and social. They form part of a comprehensive and complex interaction. On the basis of an argument that the whole is more than the sum of the parts, WHO has refused to formulate a unifying and global definition of the concept of mental health.

Source: Store Norske Leksikon, helsenorge.no