Sofia, October 10 (BTA) - UNICEF Bulgaria is launching a national campaign in support of the mental health of children and young people in connection with World Mental Health Day, marked on October 10, the organization said Sunday. The aim of the campaign is to raise awareness of the importance of mental health, break the stigma around this topic in society and raise funds to create an online platform for mental health self-care with information from professionals on the most common mental states and coping strategies.

A UNICEF Bulgaria study from 2020 shows that in a state of emergency due to COVID-19, teenagers in Bulgaria experience much more negative emotions. The loneliness experienced is four times more, anger and irritation have increased three times, and fear has doubled, the message states.

One in five deaths among teenagers aged 15-19 in the EU is caused by self-harm, according to the UNICEF Regional Office for Europe and Central Asia. Data about Bulgaria show that 11 per cent of girls and boys aged 10-19 have been diagnosed with a mental disorder.

The celebrities who support the campaign are UNICEF National Goodwill Ambassadors Elena Petrova and Vladimir Ampov-Grafa, as well as opera singer Sonya Yoncheva and athlete Ivet Lalova-Collio, among others.

An information campaign "Defeat Depression!" is also organized on the occasion of World Mental Health Day, announced the organizers of the Patient Portal, the National Centre for Public Health and Analysis (NCPHA), WHO-Bulgaria, Foundation "In Help of Health", Foundation "Global Initiative on Psychiatry" and UNICEF - Bulgaria. The main goal of the campaign will be to reduce the suffering of people with depressive disorder and their families, and to prevent the disabling effects resulting from untreated mental conditions.

Dr. Skender Sila, a representative of the WHO for Bulgaria, said that they are currently building a specialized section with information on the topic in the Patient Portal.

DS/MT