A smile can be painted on and problems can be disguised.. all we have to do is ask. You don’t have to be an expert to do that

A Scottish Government report has found that schoolgirls are increasingly suffering from mental health issues.

Possible factors for the rise between 2015 and 2018 have been suggested as a lack of physical exercise, stress and the explosion in social media use.

Scottish Conservative leader Ruth Davidson bravely revealed her battle as a teenager with depression, self-harm and suicidal thoughts.

Earlier this year, the SNP’s Gail Ross also opened her heart about a struggle with depression that cursed her 20s.

Here, the MSP for Caithness, Sutherland and Ross explains what the Scottish Government are doing to improve services. We all have mental health and it’s perhaps easier said than done but it’s incredibly important that we talk openly about it.

Mental ill health is a serious condition that is stigmatised and sidelined too often, which stops some people coming forward for help. We should all do our utmost to lift that stigma and ensure no one is left to suffer in silence.

Last week was Bipolar Awareness Week in Scotland – and it’s important to remember that, from bipolar disorder to eating disorders, mental health conditions are not confined to depression, nor are they confined to any one demographic.

About one in four people in Scotland is estimated to be affected by mental illness in any one year. So, even if you personally don’t experience a problem, you will inevitably have a friend or colleague who will, even if you don’t know about it.

As I know only too well, a smile can be painted on and problems too easily disguised.

But you don’t need to be an expert on mental health to offer support. Asking your friends, colleagues and family how they are feeling can be a simple act that can help people open up early on and help them get the help they need.

This year, the Scottish Government have put support for mental health at the heart of their agenda, with an additional £250million investment to support mental health services, funding which will increase over the next four years.

The Programme for Government is ensuring better specialist care and improving access to that care so it fits in with our daily lives and fast-tracks specialist treatment for those who need it most.

The investment will help develop a stronger network of care and support for the roughly 11,000 new mothers who experience mental health problems during and after pregnancy each year.

It will deliver 430 new school, college and university counsellors, fund mental health first-aid training for teachers and ensure that every high school in Scotland offers a counselling service.

The SNP Government are investing to transform the system so that children and young people have the support they need at the earliest possible stage, so that parents will know what help is available and schools will be better supported to deal with wellbeing concerns.

For those who aren’t in education, there will be a new community mental wellbeing service for five to 24-year-olds, offering immediate access to counselling, self-care advice and family and peer support.

All of this will be underpinned by the

Government’s mental health strategy, supported right across the work of the SNP Government and led by a Mental Health Minister, who also happens to be a trained mental health nurse.

All this sounds wonderful – because it is. We don’t need to be defined by the challenges we are facing, we can be defined by how we respond to them.

We can all feel stress, whether it’s in our jobs, our personal lives or just pressures put on us by society. When it comes to treatment, what works for one person may not work for the next. Some people may feel comfortable talking to friends What works for one person may not work for the next and family, others may not. Some conditions can be helped with medication, others may be helped by changing something in your life.

Everyone is different and the announcements made in the Programme for Government reflect this.

Understanding how we feel and learning to recognise the signs of mental health issues in others may prevent some conditions becoming unbearable.

It really helps knowing that other people understand and are looking out for you. We all need a shoulder from time to time so don’t be afraid to ask for help.