The 2 most common treatments for mental health are medication or talking treatments, but there are many other options available.

Talking treatments are often with a trained professional where you speak about specific problems or memories, sometimes working towards improving relationships with others. Speaking with a professional can help you to:

• Deal with a specific problem
• Cope with upsetting memories or experiences
• Improve relationships
• Develop more helpful ways of living day-to-day

The most common form of talking therapy is ‘Cognitive Behavioural Therapy’ or ‘CBT’. CBT is a relatively short-term treatment that aims to identify connections between your thoughts, feelings and behaviours, and to help you develop practical skills to manage any negative patterns that may be causing you difficulties.

Medication treatments aim to treat the symptoms of the mental illness but not so much curing the source of the problem. They might include sleeping pills, antidepressants, antipsychotics or mood stabilisers.