Mental health challenges

Overview

Mental health is a state of mental wellbeing that allows a person to cope with the stresses of life, reach their full potential, learn and work well, and contribute to their community.² A mental health challenge occurs when a person’s thoughts, feelings or behaviour are impacted by a combination of different personal, family, community and structural factors in a way that interferes with their ability to live a normal life.³

A person may have received a diagnosis from a health professional for their mental health challenge. Possible diagnoses include: 

• Mood disorders like depression or bipolar disorder
• Anxiety disorders
• Personality disorders
• Psychotic disorders like schizophrenia
• Eating disorders
• Trauma-related disorders like post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
• Substance abuse disorders.⁴

You can read more about these different conditions on the Health direct website(Opens in a new tab/window).

There are many reasons why a person experiencing mental health challenges might not have an official diagnosis including:

• sometimes, a person's symptoms come and go, so they don't last long enough or meet all the specific criteria for a doctor to give a diagnosis
• some people find it very difficult to share their private thoughts and feelings with a health professional
• other people worry that if they talk about their mental health challenge, they will be discriminated against, so they keep quiet
• health professionals can sometimes mistake the symptoms of mental health challenges as being caused by an existing disability.⁵

Whether a person has a diagnosis or not is less important than the impact a mental health challenge has on a person’s life. Mental health challenges can arise from a combination of factors such as genetics, environmental factors, and lifestyle choices. Life stressors can also play a big role. Some of the biggest drivers of mental distress in Australia include financial pressure, relationship challenges, and housing affordability.⁶

Important things to know about mental health challenges:

• Mental health challenges affect one in five Australians each year and almost half of the population will experience a mental health challenge in their lifetime.⁷
• People who experience mental health challenges are less likely to be employed than other people with disability and are more likely to experience discrimination and stigma.⁸
• Each person experiences mental health challenge in different ways. For some people, it might be a relatively brief experience, while for others it may last longer or occur and reoccur periodically. 

People experiencing mental health challenges face a number of barriers to employment including discrimination and stigma, as well as a lack of coordinated supports to participate in employment. 

Given the widespread incidence of mental health challenges, and their impact on getting and keeping a job, it is important that employment services have a good understanding of what mental health challenges are and their possible effects on a jobseeker or worker.

Key strategies for success

• Employment support for people experiencing mental health challenges is most effective when it is person-centred and the employment opportunities on offer align with their skills and interests.⁹
• A strengths-based approach to employment where the focus is on a person’s strengths and capabilities, rather than focusing on deficits, is more effective.
• It is important to consider that a person may have past experiences of trauma (including trauma in the workplace) that might contribute to their mental health challenges and their experiences of looking for work. Creating a supportive and trauma-informed practice is essential.¹⁰
• Integration of employment services and mental health supports can enhance employment outcomes for people with mental health challenges.¹¹

A note on language: There are a lot of different terms is used to describe adverse states of mental health. Some common terms include psychosocial disability, psychiatric disability, mental health conditions, and mental health challenges. The term ‘mental health challenge’ is a generic term for the full range of adverse mental health experiences irrespective of whether a person has a diagnosis or not.¹² People with mental health challenges experience a lot of stigma and misunderstanding, and language can play a big role in adding to, or reducing, stigma and harm. We recommend using ‘mental health challenge’ as it is empowering and inclusive, and reflects people’s lived experiences rather than defining them by their condition.^{13 14}