Medline Plus and Mental Health begins by giving a definition of mental health and tips for a healthy lifestyle. On the start page it has headings a link to Mental disorders, an article to begin your reading with, Mental Health: Keeping Your Emotional Health by the American Academy of Family Physicians, Overviews, Latest News, Diagnoses/Symptoms, Alternative Therapy, Specific Conditions, Related Issues, Clinical Trials, Journal Articles, Organizations, Statistics, Medline Plus Magazine, and an area targeted to specific populations: Children, Seniors, Teenagers, and Women. Everything is easy to find on this simple layout. You can sign up for Mental Health updates by email.

Clicking on the Mental Disorders link at the bottom of the introductions takes you to an introductory paragraph about anxiety disorders, including panic disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, and phobias. This page has links to bipolar disorder, depression, personality disorders, and psychotic disorders. The Start Here paragraph underneath gives links to two articles: Mental Illness by Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research and Numbers Count: Mental Disorders in America (National Institute of Mental Health). You can sign up for a newsletter on mental disorders.

On the home page, click on links at the bottom under the headings: Basics, Research, Learn More, and Reference Shelf. Under the heading, Specific Conditions, on the start page, I clicked on the “Anger Management” article, by Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research, and found a concise, clear article defining anger management, its purpose and process, where to get help, and the physical and mental benefits of learning to manage this emotion. Under the same heading, there was “Building Self-Esteem: A Self-Help Guide” (Center for Mental Health Services), which defined low self-esteem, its relation to other mental illnesses, and concrete steps for raising self-esteem every day. Another self-help guide, “Dealing with the Effects of Trauma: A Self-Help Guide” (Center for Mental Health Services), listed causes of trauma and the feelings that accompany them, how to seek help for trauma, and a list of things to do to help yourself feel better short term. I liked that this article gave a list of issues good counseling should deal with.

Under the Related Issues heading, I found an article entitled, “How to Be Happy: Tips for Cultivating Contentment” (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research). This was short, concise, and gave some down-to-earth tips. Under the Seniors heading, “Healthy Aging: Keeping Mentally Fit as You Age” (Geriatric Mental Health Foundation), gave some extensive tips for keeping body and mind healthy, signs of memory loss and unhealthy emotional problems, and a list of organizations to contact for more information.

I really liked the Alternative Therapy section, which included meditation and yoga articles. Each article was broken down into an introduction, key points, overview, examples, health benefits, research, references, and places to go for more information. The yoga article included a section on Training, Licensing, and Certification for instructors. Under the heading Specific Conditions, there was a thoughtful article, “Forgiveness: Letting go of grudges and bitterness,” By Mayo Clinic staff. The “Road to Resilience” (American Psychological Association), also under this heading gave several tips for dealing with strong emotions and building a stronger self in trying times. This article is especially appropriate for today's economic environment. Under the Clinical Trials heading, there were numerous studies under the ClinicalTrials.gov: Mental Disorders link, by National Institutes of Health, that dealt with subjects such as “Reduction of Cardiovascular Risk in Severe Mental Illness” and “Tai Chi Effects on Chronic Insomnia in Breast Cancer Survivors: Immune Mechanisms”. The links to these had keyword conditions and keyword interventions under them for easy browsing.

This was a well-organized site with well-written articles that were easy to find. I would recommend it as a starting point for any research or information on mental health. The site linked directly to the organizations American Psychiatric Association, National Institute of Mental Health, and Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, which are all excellent sources of information. The MedlinePlus magazine is a free magazine you can read online; the site also links directly to it. “Good Mental Health” under the Women's heading links to directly to womenshealth.gov, which goes into several aspects of women's mental ans physical health. If you have any questions or are just seeking information, this is definitely a site worth visiting.