Thoughts and experiences of life and mental health

Mental Health facts Part M-1

You are worthy, let no other human convince you otherwise.

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World statistics of mental health disorders

The info provided in this section is only estimated figures from global statistics. (Information extracted from multiple sources).

10.7% of the population live with some form of mental disorder.

3.4% of the population lives with depression.

3.8% of the population live with anxiety disorders.

0.6% of the population live with bipolar disorders.

0.2% of the population live with an eating disorder.

0.3% of the population lives with schizophrenia.

13% suffer from any mental or substance use disorder.

1.4% suffer from alcohol use disorder.

0.9% suffer from drug use disorder.

14.3% of deaths worldwide are attributed to mental disorders.

90% of suicide cases are due to some form of mental disorder.

11.9% of females and

9.3% of males are affected by mental health illnesses.

The mind has fascinated me for as long as I can recall, this I speculate would be because of my intimate battles with mental health complications.

Psyche/mind/brain, would all be terms associated with this vast mechanism that is our mind, the endless potential of our psyches should excite anyone that possesses one of these extraordinary mechanisms.

Did you know that the mind has an estimated 2.5 million gigabytes of storage! I don't believe we possess the capacity yet to develop such a storage mechanism.

Over 50 thousand thoughts per day, that is the average quantity of thoughts an individual human mind has in a day, Wow! I never realized my mind was that energetic, this explains the anxiety, "if only."

Let's get back to the chapter at hand, Psychological facts. Bellow, I will indicate just a few facts but there are a vast number of facts on the mind, so take the time and research the rest.

· Short-term memory can only store seven pieces of info for twenty seconds.

· The average human brain weighs three pounds and is made up of 73% water.

· 96% of all decisions are subconsciously made.

· The mind has 86 billion neurons and they travel at 150 miles per hour.

· 20% of the body's total oxygen and energy is used by the mind.

· Our minds have only 20 minutes of attention span, shorter than that of a goldfish, and 12 minutes shorter than it was 10 years ago.

· The brain starts slowing down at the age of 24.

When I saw some of these facts for the first time, I was mind blown, especially the point that 96% of our daily thoughts are subconscious! 73% water, I knew water is important for the function of our bodies but now I realize that this is not just true for the body but the mind as well.

Let's carry on with the list.

· When intoxicated the brain cannot form new memories.

· The hippocampus helps transform short-term into long-term memories.

· The brain generates between 12 - 15 watts of electricity, enough to power a lightbulb.

· Vitamin B can help improve short and long-term memories.

· Memories start forming in the womb.

· Excessive sweating can temporarily shrink the brain.

The thought of me holding a lightbulb while powering it with my brain reminds me of a supervillain that generates devastating electricity. Quite amusing yet enlightening isn't it. Then again, we see the point of memories forming in the womb, I get excited at this part as my anxiety has been an issue from an extremely young age, this answers the question of why.

· Five minutes without oxygen can cause brain damage.

· Taking a quiz a second time may increase the chance of remembering the facts by 65%.

· Learning new elements increases brain matter in the brain.

· Memories are prioritized by emotions.

· Emotions can alter our brain chemistry.

· 60 - 70% of the thoughts of the mind are negative.

I knew that most of my thoughts are negative yet never realized that it could be this much, the battle to stay positive is a difficult battle for most individuals and this proves why. The fact that our memories are prioritized by emotions is a shocker! This means that if memory is not deemed important according to our emotional response, we then simply disregard this memory.

· More than 100 thousand chemicals reactions take place in the brain every second.

· Practicing recollection can help PTSD.

· The brain's texture and consistency are comparable to tofu.

· The brain itself cannot feel pain.

· Memories change over time.

· The brain can fill the gaps in memory with made-up sequences of events.

· We can't actually multitask; people can only attend to one cognitive task at a time.

· Dopamine causes seeking behavior, causing us to want, desire, seek and search.

I extremely got a kick out of these facts, undoubtedly an eye-opener. I have confidence that some of these facts provided you with insight into what the brain is capable of achieving.