TWICE I have known people who have died while suffering from mental illness.

The first was when I was still in my teens I met the younger brother of a schoolmate when travelling home by train and we talked all the way to our station. There was no sign of anything wrong.

A week later, I read in the local paper that he had hung himself.

The second was a quiet, pleasant young man I knew through my son. When I heard of his death a few weeks ago, I remembered how I had once found him sleeping on my sofa one Saturday morning. He had been out with my son in York and the last bus to his home, out of York, had gone, so my son had invited him to stay overnight.

I had no objection to the unexpected visit, and happily took him home later that morning by car. Again, his death was a shock and a grief and I felt for his family, a lovely group of people.

Mental illness can be a killer. Unlike fatal physical illness, the signs of impending death may not be visible or can be easy to miss.

When I started out as a reporter in the Midlands, I came across a coroner who avoided suicide verdicts whenever he could. He practically needed a note of intention from the deceased starting: “I being of sound mind do hereby declare and affirm” before he recorded one.

Otherwise he preferred “did take his/her own life while the balance of his/her mind was disturbed” which to my mind is more accurate. It shows that, just like those who die from a physical illness, those who die from a mental illness are not in control of their own fate.

Thanks to generations of doctors and other health professionals, we have a fairly comprehensive understanding of how to look after our physical body and prevent it, as far as we can, from being harmed.

We know about hygiene, avoiding infection, good eating habits, healthy living styles, how to warm up and warm down before and after exercise so we don’t injure ourselves and so on.

Health prevention for mental illness lags a long way behind.

Mental illness is the Cinderella of the medical services when it comes to resources – the fiasco of Bootham Hospital being just one example.

Those who are mentally ill are regarded with fear, stigmatised or seen as slackers trying to dodge out of something or other. But one in four of us will suffer from mental illness at some stage of our life and as those who work with the elderly know, increasingly we are finishing our lives suffering from some form of mental ill health.

What can we do to look after our minds and keep them in balance?

Perhaps sportsmen and women can show us the answer. They devote much of their time to preparing their body for the demands they put upon it – and a lot of mental illness is caused by demanding use of the mind, especially those common mental illnesses, depression and stress.

If only we were taught techniques from an early age on handling stressful or mentally strenuous use so that it leaves the least impact on our mind.

Then we could use them during, for example, a job interview, exam, divorce, looking after a tiny child, working long hours, driving through York in the rush hour etc. All of these make demands on our thinking and emotional centres.

I would love to know of ways to make the mind stronger to cope with future stresses in the equivalent of mental endurance training – and ways of draining the mental equivalent of lactic acid from my mind after heavy use.

Above all, I would like to see it become acceptable in society to be aware of the strains we place on other minds whether in our work or personal life and to regard a healthy mind as being as important as a healthy body.

Perhaps then mental illness will no longer be the most common cause of death among our young people.

l If you are suffering mental health problems or have concerns about someone, the following organisations can help:

- Samaritans offer 24 hour, confidential emotional support service for anyone in distress or experiencing suicidal thoughts and feelings on 116 123

- The NHS 24/7 crisis service in York can be contacted on 01904 610700. The service is for people with acute mental health problems or who are a significant risk to themselves or others.

- If you have concerns that someone is unwell and not getting the help they need City of York Council’s assessment team can be contacted on 01904 555111. The emergency out of hours number is 0845 034 9417.

- If you feel somebody is at serious risk of harm you should call 999 and report your concerns.

- York Mind offers support to people recovering from mental ill health on 01904 643364.