Behind Closed Doors

By Lyssa James

Behind Closed Doors is a short self-help book aimed at young people who may be struggling with anxiety and/or depression, either pre-existing or pandemic induced. This book offers an easy to read, in-depth insight into anxiety and depression, the impacts of the global pandemic on one's mental health (particularly young people), valuable statistics, and self-help tips and tools to proactively achieve and maintain mental wellness. 

• Language: English
• Publisher: Lyssa James
• Release date: Apr 28, 2021
• ISBN: 9781393751434

Book preview

Hello and Welcome

An Introduction to the Book

THANK YOU FOR JOINING us. This book is for any young person having a tough time with the impact of the pandemic. As a world, we are going through unprecedented times and this can leave us all feeling a little shaky. But for some of us, the pandemic and the subsequent quarantine has more of an effect on us. Those of us with pre-existing mental illness might find the changes and uncertainty in the world more challenging and therefore, we need to learn to adapt and take care of ourselves. Whether you have a diagnosed mental illness or not, this book can help you to improve your mental well-being during the quarantine. Life is weird at the moment, there’s no question about that. There’s no denying that this uncertainty can send our mental health into limbo too. If the current climate has left you feeling out of sync, you are not alone. Did you know that 20.6% of adults in the US have a mental illness? That’s one out of every five people, or a whopping 51.5 million people.[1] What I’m trying to say, is that you’re not alone, especially given that almost half of the population will experience mental illness at some point in their lives.[2] We are all currently living behind closed doors. If not literally, then figuratively. The pandemic means that we are facing restrictions to what we are able to do.

Mental illness is not something to be embarrassed about.

THERE’S LONG SINCE been this taboo about mental illness, which is crazy to me (pardon the pun!) because it’s so common. It’s a normal part of life. Half of mental disorders begin by age 14 and three-quarters by the age of 24. Understandably, when you’re a young adult or teenager going out there to face the world, mental illness isn’t something you particularly want to talk about or deal with. That’s fair enough. I understand, it wasn’t too long since I was that age. But the thing is, the less we talk about something, the harder it becomes to talk about. I’m not saying that you have to shout about your mental health issues from the rooftops but it’s not something to ignore either. Mental illness is an illness, the same as if you suffer from diabetes or a broken leg. It is something to be treated, allowing you to live a normal life. It is nothing to be ashamed of. It doesn’t mean you’re weak. If anything, people with a mental illness are stronger than most because they’re fighting every day. Before we get into the self-help portion of this book, I want to briefly go over what mental illness is and what to do if you are suffering. We’ll be focusing specifically on anxiety and depression, but the advice goes for any mental illness. It’s generic and stuff you can do to keep your mental well-being ticking over. Nothing too strenuous, don’t worry.