Mental illness is the abnormal behavior, feeling or thinking which makes a person unable to work, get along with other people and enjoy life.

There are many things which can cause abnormal bahavior  and mental health in particular. These include hereditary, which is when the illness is in the family; the parents may pass it on to their off-spring and decendents. People whose parents have sufferred mental illness are more likely to develop mental illness once they meet stressful situitions in life, such as death of a loved one, loss of job, divorce, severe or terminal illness etc.

Injury of the brain which occurs during childbirth or through accidents such as a hard blow to the head during fights and road accidents, infections of the brain like meningitis, celebral malaria, encephalitis, AIDs and syphilis can bring about abnormal behaviours. Hormonal changes like menopause, pregnacy and chilldbirth, during are fertile periods of life that some women are not able to cope with with regard to the changes that occur in their bodies consequently  resulting in mental illness.

Alcohol and abusive drugs like canabis, glue sniffing, cocaine and other forms can lead to mental illness in some people because their system cannot cope with these substance in their blood some of which would affect the brain cells. If the body lacks some nutrients like Vitamin B, the person may develop dementia, which is the inability to recognize familiar surroundings and people, and the inability to  remember past things.

People usually go through phases of mental health with early or less serious signs which gradually develop into psychiatric conditions and if these are not treated promptly, mental illness may develop. Loss of weight, difficulty in getting to sleep or waking up early in the morning and not being able to go back to sleep, persistent headaches which do not respond to killer or a burning sensation, and movement in the head are early signs and symptoms.

When a person is always with an unhappy feelings, heart beats are faster than normal, excesive sweating, poor appetite or too much eating, being frightened easily by objects or situations which most people are not afraid of, persistent ill health which doctors cannot find a cure for, loss of interest in everyday activities, wondering aimlessly in the neighborhood or collecting rubbish and keeping it in bags or in a house, saying things which do not make sense, voilence and aggression such as beating family members and becoming angry for no good reason, and attempting to kill oneself or other family members are all signs of mental illnes.

Just like good physical health, there is the need to have a good mental heath to ensure that one's life is fruitful.  Some of the preventive measures are: accepting what you are and making good use of the opportunity that comes your way, avoiding excesses in life, living a peacful life, planning problems that may lead to unhappiness at home and the work place by talking about them or discusing them w ith someone, use social walfare organization and other support systems to assist the situation, say no to drugs and alcohol as they may contribute to mental illness by damaging your brain and to try to live a healthy and fruitful life by observing all measures promoting health.