• Question: Is there any age of people who have more mental health problems or is it just based on how people live and their surroundings?

    Asked by anon-216535 to Robert, Olly, Nicola, Jasmin, Dennis, Caroline on 10 Jun 2019.
    • Photo: Dennis Relojo-Howell

      Dennis Relojo-Howell answered on 10 Jun 2019:

      A number of research reveals that 50% of mental health problems are established by age 14. But of course, anyone, at any age can suffer from mental health problems.

    • Photo: Caroline Brett

      Caroline Brett answered on 10 Jun 2019:

      I think anyone can experience mental health difficulties at any age – it depends on a range of things, including thought patterns, surroundings, experiences, etc. There are some people who are affected more than others, perhaps due to patterns of thinking and behaviour that they have developed over time. It can be very difficult to break these patterns!

    • Photo: Robert Dempsey

      Robert Dempsey answered on 10 Jun 2019:

      I think people of any age can experience poor mental health. There is research to suggest that early life experiences in childhood can effect mental health in adulthood, but I think it’s likely that there’s a complex interaction of lots of different things that explain this (e.g. our biology + our social circumstances + our psychological functioning). It does depend on the sort of mental health issue though – we know a lot of people living with bipolar have their first mood episode in their late teens and into their twenties, but there is more recognition of bipolar amongst older age groups (e.g. people who get a diagnosis in their 50s or older).

    • Photo: Jasmin Moon

      Jasmin Moon answered on 11 Jun 2019:

      There is a model called the ‘bio-psycho-social’ model which is often used to explain mental health and psychical health conditions. It basically says that our biology (our genes, hormones), our psychology (our mind and personalities) and our social environment (where we live, how many friends/family we have etc) all impact on how health problems develop and how severely someone is affected by them.
      This helps psychologists understand why someone might be feeling the way they are, no matter how old they are!

    • Photo: Oliver Clabburn

      Oliver Clabburn answered on 11 Jun 2019:

      Good question Cheshire Cat! I think like our physical health, we can all go through periods where we don’t always feel on top-form and really healthy. I think this is the same for our mental health. With that in mind, health (physical or mental) is important for everyone, at every age. You’ve got a really good point though, how people live and their surroundings can be important influences too.

      Let’s think of an example… perhaps an elderly couple who live in a rural community. One of them has just died and clearly the remaining person is going through a real tricky time with bereavement. It’s possible that their surroundings (rural, no-one really around) might be a barrier for their mental health. Alternatively, they might need that space and time by themselves to grieve and process their loss. What I’m trying to get at, is that mental health is not always caused by how people live and their surroundings, but instead, that their surroundings may actually help their MH.

    • Photo: Nicola Johnstone

      Nicola Johnstone answered on 12 Jun 2019:

      The majority of mental health problems begin in adolescence. The teenage years are a time of rapid physical and emotional development, and take place while social influences are most persuasive. Some cope well, others not so much. But what we experience in adolescence can have long lasting effects.

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