Editorial: The debate around over-pathologising young people's mental health

Five articles in this issue's debate discuss whether we over-pathologise young people's mental health. The articles highlight the paradox between inflating diagnoses in the community and under-recognising mental health needs in health and social care settings. Co-production with young people and their families when developing services, community-based initiatives, and research projects is an important method for getting the balance right between increasing awareness and offering support for mental health problems at the earliest possible opportunity, without misinterpreting and mislabelling as 'mental illness' the emotions and behaviours of young people in response to challenging or changing life circumstances.