Although mental health problems and mental illness affect each person differently, there are some common issues that many people experience.

These include things like:

feeling exhausted and having low energy—difficulty getting up for school, staying awake in class

having a hard time concentrating,

having a hard time getting along socially—feeling really low and down on yourself

having weird and scary thoughts that make it hard to concentrate

being distracted by everything around you

being organized—setting priorities, keeping track of time and responsibilities

trouble solving problems and coping with everyday stuff

behaving in weird ways—feeling unpredictable and impulsive, reacting inappropriately,

isolating yourself from friends and family

You may also be dealing with the side effects of medication (if you’re taking it as part of your treatment for a mental illness). While medication may be necessary to control some of the symptoms of your illness, it can also be affect the way you think and feel in unwanted ways. These changes are called side effects.

Some of the potential side effects of medication include things like: restlessness, irritability, drowsiness, fatigue, dry mouth, trembling, memory lapses, blurred vision, and feeling “brain dead”. Side effects can sometimes decrease over time, but they also may be a sign that there’s a problem either with the type or dose of your medication.

Remember to talk to your doctor and about the side effects that you may be experiencing, so that you can work out a solution. Although there may be some downsides to taking your medication, most people find that the advantages of taking their medication are much greater than the disadvantages.