Category: Mental Health

by Michael Gillan Peckitt January 30, 2025 Number of comments0
Children Disability Japan Mental Health

Suicides among school children in Japan at highest level since 1980, overall figure declines for second consecutive year

Elementary, junior high and high school students accounted for 527 of those completing suicide, the highest level since records began in 1980, with the number staying above 500 for the third straight year. Of them, a record 163 junior high school students killed themselves.

The number of people who killed themselves in Japan fell to 20,268 in 2024, marking the second consecutive year of decline and the second-lowest level after 20,169 in 2019, the health ministry said Wednesday.

by Michael Gillan Peckitt January 29, 2025 Number of comments0
Disability Education Employment Japan Mental Health

Record Number of Teachers in Japan Took Leave for Mental Illness in Fiscal Year 2023 [Podcast Episode]

A record number of public school educators took leave due to mental disorders in fiscal 2023, the third straight year of increase, according to a ministry survey. A record 7,119 educators, or 0.77 percent of the total, temporarily stepped away from their positions under the official leave system for mental illnesses in fiscal 2023, up 580 individuals, or 0.06 percentage point, from the previous year.

by Michael Gillan Peckitt January 28, 2025 Number of comments0
Disability Education Japan Mental Health

Record Number of Teachers in Japan Took Leave for Mental Illness in Fiscal Year 2023

A record number of public school educators took leave due to mental disorders in fiscal 2023, the third straight year of increase, according to a ministry survey. A record 7,119 educators, or 0.77 percent of the total, temporarily stepped away from their positions under the official leave system for mental illnesses in fiscal 2023, up 580 individuals, or 0.06 percentage point, from the previous year.

by Michael Gillan Peckitt December 21, 2024 Number of comments0
Disability Japan Mental Health

Record 78 Percent in Japan Feel Anxious Government Survey Shows

A Japanese government survey showed on Friday 20th December that 78.2 pct of respondents feel anxious or worried, the highest level since the government began asking about such sentiment in the annual survey in 1981. The public opinion survey on people’s lives by the Cabinet Office also found that 28.1 pct of respondents think that their standard of living is in the lower middle part of the general public, the highest level in 35 years, while 46.7 pct answered middle, 14.2 pct upper middle, 8.7 pct low and 1.7 pct high. People worry most about their own health, cited by 63.8 pct of all respondents, followed by plans for life after retirement, picked by 62.8 pct, and the outlook for future income and assets, chosen by 58.0 pct.

by Michael Gillan Peckitt December 16, 2024 Number of comments0
Crime Japan Mental Health

Manhunt continues after McDonald’s stabbings leave teen dead in Japan

Police continued their search on Monday for a man believed responsible for the stabbing death of a 15-year-old junior high school girl two days ago at a McDonald’s restaurant in southwestern Japan.

The man, described by witnesses as being around 40 years old, also stabbed a male student who was waiting in line with the female victim, Saaya Nakashima, at the fast-food restaurant in Kitakyushu, Fukuoka Prefecture. The 15-year-old boy, who police did not name, survived but suffered serious injuries.

by Michael Gillan Peckitt July 12, 2024 Number of comments0
2024 Paris Summer Olympics Japan Mental Health Para Sports Paralympics Sports

Mental Health Experts to Join Japan Delegation at Paris Olympics

The Japanese delegation to the Paris Olympics, which begin later this month, will include four mental health experts to help create a better environment for Japanese athletes. It will be the first Summer Olympics where such experts, called “welfare officers,” will accompany Japanese athletes. Previously, mental health services for Japanese athletes were provided online. But Dohi said it is “easier for athletes to talk” to accompanying experts.