I have heard people say “it’s better to have any kind of physical illness than to be  mentally ill”. This alludes to the fear and stigma that is attached to or associated with mental health conditions. It is as if there is something significantly lacking in a person or human being which causes their mind to fail to function as well as it should. This then is why society has come up with derogatory names (benzi, dhunyazi,crazy, cookoo,mupengo, kutwanya, kudhomoka) and phrases like (kumhanya mushini/bani, kukanga waya, luny bin) to describe various aspects of mental illness, its causes and treatment.  These negative labels and perceptions then make it hard to talk about or consider that we or our loved ones might have a mental health condition. For many, being mentally ill is a sign of weakness or a shameful personal flaw that cannot be fixed or dealt with. Thus it is easier to ignore or deny unusual changes in the way we think, feel and act which might point towards the presence of a mental health condition. Naturally, any ailment that is unattended to can grow and become unmanageable and were mental health is concerned, the usual or default causes for illness are spiritual and supernatural (witchcraft, demonology, curses, hexes, etc.).Attributing illness to spiritual and supernatural causes takes mental health conditions out of the realm of the physical or natural. This in turn makes mental illness appear to be a mystical, difficult or insurmountable challenge that one cannot overcome or get help for. Thus, at most times, people become desperate to get assistance and healing which leaves them vulnerable to con artists and fortune hunters that rob them of their wealth, fill them with fear and reinforce the belief that their situation is difficult and insolvable. At the core of all this is the ignorance that we have, as a society, about different types of mental health conditions that exist, their causes and treatment. Therefore this page is dedicated to adding value to your life through articles that will equip you with accurate information about mental health, illness and where to truly get help.