Warning Signs of Mental Illness and Where to Turn

Mental illness is very common in the United States today. The National Mental Health Institute states that about 26.2% of the population in the United States, or about 57.7 million people, has some kind of mental illness. About 6% of the population has severe mental illness. Mental illness is the major disabling factor in the United States today for adults from 18 to 44 years of age.

“Mental health problems” actually strike everyone at some point in his or her life. Whether it’s an acute but temporary episode of depression caused by the death of a loved one and eases on its own and without professional intervention, over time or the more lasting clinical depression that needs professional intervention and treatment.

“Mental illness” is defined as a disease that causes detrimental changes in behavior and thought that interfere with an individual’s life. Unlike acute episodes of stress or depression brought on by life events (but which nonetheless can themselves benefit from intervention such as a temporary course of medication or work with a therapist, if distressing enough), these changes are prolonged and interfere with an individual’s normal functioning.

Before mental illness is diagnosed, physical problems that may cause symptoms should be ruled out and treated, such as an under- or overactive thyroid. Once any physical causes are ruled out, though, mental illness should be considered a possibility and appropriate treatment sought if any of the following symptoms occur in adults:

• Thinking becomes disorganized and not clear
• There is prolonged depression or sadness present (can either be related to a precipitating event such as the death of a loved one or come “out of the blue”)
• The person exhibits periods of extreme or worsening depression, followed by periods of increasing and extreme excitability, euphoria, energy and/or engages in impulsive behavior such as excessive and inappropriate spending
• Withdrawing from friends and family
• Sleeping too much or too little
• Eating too much or too little
• Excessive anger out of proportion to the situation at hand
• Excessive worrying or being overly anxious or fearful
• Inability to handle normal daily tasks or to function “as usual”
• Thoughts of suicide
• Denial that there’s any problem when confronted
• Physical illnesses or complaints with no medical basis
• Abuse of drugs, alcohol or other mood-altering substances

In children, symptoms can include:

• A drop in grades or other uncharacteristic changes in school performance
• Poor grades even when effort is applied
• Expressing anxiety or worry, such as a refusal to go to bed or unwillingness to go to school
• Having frequent nightmares
• Frequently disobeying or showing anger or aggression
• Having temper tantrums past the appropriate age (i.e., school age)

For adolescents, symptoms can include:

• Drug and alcohol abuse
• Inability to handle “everyday” problems or perform daily activities
• Sleeping too much or too little
• Eating too much or too little
• Physical illnesses or complaints with no medical basis
• Engaging in truancy, theft or vandalism or “excessively” defying authority beyond normal teenaged rebellion
• Obsession with gaining weight
• Protracted moodiness or depressive behavior, perhaps with changes in eating or sleeping and/or with thoughts of death or suicide
• Excessive anger out of proportion to the situation at hand

There is help if you or someone you love is suffering from any of the above symptoms and it’s nothing to be ashamed of. The National Alliance on Mental Illness has resources to assist you in finding help local to you.

Visit http://www.nimh.nih.gov/healthinformation/gettinghelp.cfm for more information, and/or http://mentalhealth.samhsa.gov/databases , offered by the federal government’s Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, to find help in your area.

Disasters, Trauma & Your Mental Health

Disasters and trauma are an unfortunate part of life. Every person is affected differently by a trauma, but none the less, disasters ultimately will have some sort of impact on just about everyone. Different factors determine how a disaster or trauma will affect one’s mental health. Broaching the subject of “mental health” still carries a stigma for some, but there is nothing to be embarrassed about. Realizing what normal feelings and reactions may result from a trauma is the first step in determining if one needs professional help.

What exactly constitutes a “disaster” or a “trauma”? That truly depends on the person. However, the following is a list of such known occurrences:

• Various accidents
• Physical, emotional or sexual abuse
• Neglect
• War experience
• Alcoholism
• Illness, surgery or disability
• The death of a family member of friend
• A natural disaster

Obviously, this list is in no way conclusive, but meant as a help for someone experiencing intense emotions due to a traumatic experience.

After someone experiences a traumatic event or disaster, they may feel a whole host of emotions. Most will feel some level of anxiety, grief and/or anger. Other normal experiences after such events include shock, inability to focus, difficulty making decisions, loss of appetite of overeating, crying, headaches and difficulty sleeping. These responses are normal and some are to be expected. Over time, these negative emotions should lessen.

But for some, these emotions and disturbances don’t lessen over time. The following list is a brief example of warning signs that you may need to contact your health provider and seek professional medical help to alleviate your distress.

These signs include:

• Continued nightmares and thoughts about the event
• Inability to stop thinking and ruminating about what happened
• Continual avoidance of thoughts, feelings or conversations that remind you of the event
• Inappropriate avoidance of places or people that remind you of the event
• Fearful of the future
• Difficulty falling asleep or staying asleep
• Easily startled or “jumpy”
• Overly concerned about safety
• Having intense feelings of guilt, worthless or hopeless
• Not enjoying activities you once enjoyed
• Any thoughts of death or suicide

When these feelings are so intense that they affect your daily ability to function, that also is a strong indicator that professional help is in order. Even if the trauma occurred years ago, you may have never fully overcome it. Professional health providers can help diagnose potential underlying problems or prescribe medication that can significantly improve your daily life.

It may even be the case that you have been diagnosed with anxiety, depression or even phobias without realizing that trauma is the cause. It has recently become accepted to look at traumas and disasters as serious causes of mental illness. If your current diagnosis and treatment are not delivering the results that you want, make an appointment with your health provider. Don’t give up on your treatment. Life events occur and can cause great pain and significant emotional disturbances, but these events need not dictate your life. Give yourself time to heal, but do seek professional treatment if your symptoms are significantly disturbing your daily life.

Positive Attitude and Optimism for Promoting Health

Perhaps you know that your mental health has a strong relationship with your physical health. If you adopt a positive attitude and an optimistic view of life, you will lead a more satisfying and healthy life than when you constantly look at the dark side of things or take a negative stance. Studies have shown that people with a happy state of mind live healthier and longer. They lead more fulfilling lives. People who are highly pessimistic are known to run a higher risk of suffering from cardiovascular disorders and other ailments than those who are habitually highly optimistic.

You would like to live a good and healthy life for long, surely. The best way for this is to shed your negative way of thinking and replace it by positive thinking, positive attitude and optimism. This is the very foundation for well-being and a fulfilling and happy life. Real enjoyment in life comes when your good health permits you to reap the benefits of your material wealth. And that is possible if you habitually look at the brighter side of life. The power of positive thinking cannot be underestimated in terms of its effect on promoting health.

Adopt a way of thinking which helps you always to be hopeful, even in times of extreme misery and sorrow. As day follows night, if you remember that a brighter and better life is round the corner and that the present, however poorly lighted it might be, will give way to a brighter future, your attitude is optimistic. It will help you to deal with the prevailing circumstances with fortitude and patience.

Psychological studies conducted on some Harvard students have established a strong correlation between the optimistic attitude demonstrated in their student days and the health they enjoyed after they attained the age of 40 and above. Optimism has proven benefits. You deal with your life’s problems in a better way if you adopt a positive attitude. You will then lead a healthier, happier life and there is a high probability of living longer.

It is not impossible to change your way of thinking from negative to positive, even when you have been a pessimist all along. You can change your attitudes, with a little bit of effort and training. Remember, it is never too late to change, if that change is for the better and holds out hope for a better health and happier life. Start right away by banishing all negative remarks and utterances that you are in the habit of making. Gradually improve upon it by thinking with hope for better things to come, for better health and for a favorable solution to your problems, whatever they might be.

Practice is essential for thinking in a positive manner even when faced with an apparently hopeless situation. Analyze the facts, get rid of your fears and above all take full responsibility for your actions. Just see some good in the worst of situations and events. If you adopt this attitude, you will see for yourself how your life takes a new meaning. You will be healthy and happy.