Information About Mental Health
- onceuponageneratio
- Jan 7, 2022
- 3 min read
Did you know that due to discrimination, prejudice or in general, the stigma surrounding the idea of being mentally ill causes nearly half of the population with mental health issues to be quiet and not recieve treatment. Also, even if one were to wish to be treated, the health care in many areas have many restrictions in regards to people who are mentally ill. For instance, according to the National Alliance on Mental Illness, “medicare beneficiaries are also limited to 190 days of lifetime inpatient psychiatric hospital care.” This is not only a restriction to mentally ill patients, but is also discrimination towrads them since this rule only applies to inpatient psychiatric hospital care, no other hospital care has this restriction.
However, one should not lose hope as there are many ways to slow down the process and most likely allow them to not have to enter psychiatric hospital care. Therefore, today we are going to discuss the signs/symptoms of common mental health disorders along with the ways to treat someone if they are likely to be diagnosed with it.
To begin with, one of the most common mental health disorders is depression (can be diagnosed as major depressive disorder, persistent depressive disorder, bipolar disorder, etc.). Depression can be caused from chemical imbalances, but these chemical imbalances are oftentimes caused by stressful life events such as being abused or being in an abusive relationship, long-term isolation, etc. If you are descending for weeks or months into deep unhappiness, lethargy, and have feelings of worthlessness, you are most likely experiencing depression. The most common type of treatment is therapy and can be, but is not limited to, cognitive behavioral therapy, interpersonal therapy, and psychodynamic therapy. Also, since depression is mainly caused by insufficient levels of serotonin (a neurotransmitter that stabilizes our feeling of well-being), taking drugs is another treatment and oftentimes, many psychiatrists would prescribe drugs that would help stabilize the levels of serotonin.
Next, bipolar disorder is a disorder under the same category as depression (the category was formerly known as mood disorders) which may be surprising since it is not often discussed with depression, but they both share very similar traits. It is a mental illness that occurs when a person alternates between hopelessness and lethargy of depression (for around 2 weeks) and the hyperactive, widely optimistic phase of mania (lasting around 2 weeks). It is said to be caused by an imbalance of certain chemicals (neurotransmitters) or can be triggered by sleep deprivation, medications, seasonal changes, etc. The best treatment includes the combination of both medication and psychotherapy. Medication depends on the patient’s needs, but for most people with bipolar disorder, the most common type of medication are mood-stabilizing drugs.
Moving on, anxiety, a widespread topic on the internet with millions of people dealing with this, has many subcategories: generalized anxiety disorder, panic disorder, social anxiety disorder, etc. The most common being the generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) which is caused by excessive anxiety and worry. It is often explained to be when one has difficulty controlling emotions and is associated with restlessness, being easily fatigued, mind going blank and having issues with concentrating. Studies have shown that therapy, specifically talk or psychological therapy/counseling has been an effective treatment for anxiety and medication is also a choice, but depends upon the decision of the patient and the psychiatrist.
Lastly, obsessive-compulsive related disorders with OCD and body dysmorphic disorder being the most common ones under this category consists of persistent unwanted thoughts (obsessions) and maladaptive behavior used to reduce those thoughts (compulsions). OCD specifically is diagnosed by the signs of repetitive thoughts that produce anxiety; and repetitive behaviors that gets rid of the anxiety associated with the obsessions while body dysmorphic disorder occurs when one is preoccupied with a perceived defect or flaw in their physical appearance that seems insignificant to others. This will then cause them to perform repetitive behaviors (mirror cracks, skin picking, etc.) or mental acts in response to the appearance concerns. Both cognitive behavioral therapy and/or medication have been proven to be the most effective treatments for obsessive-compulsive related disorders.
In the end, even if you are not experiencing a mental health disorder, check on those around you, you never know what they are going through. The stigma surrounding mental health disorders is very negative in our society and so by reaching out to people shows them that you care and are willing to help them. Therefore, check on those around you because you never know what they have and/or are going through.
Works Cited
https://www.helpguide.org/articles/depression/depression-treatment.htm https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/anxiety/diagnosis-treatment/drc-20350967
American Psychiatric Association. (2013). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (5th ed.). https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.books.9780890425596
Comments