Welcome back to the second post of a three-part series – Managing Mental Health & Where to Get Help
In the first part of this series, I spoke about RECOGNITION
Today I’m going to speak about – EDUCATING:
- Different types of Mental Illness
- Educating yourself on Mental Illness and why it’s important
- Websites that educate about Mental Health
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Different types of Mental Illness
Five major categories of mental illnesses:
- Anxiety disorders.
- Mood disorders.
- Schizophrenia/psychotic disorders.
- Dementia.
- Eating disorders.
Some of the more common disorders are depression, bipolar disorder, dementia, schizophrenia and anxiety disorders.
With these disorders come symptoms that not only impair mental functioning and thought processing but also limit one’s ability to physically cope and safely care for themselves. These symptoms can include:
- Hallucinations.
- Delusions.
- Disorganized speech.
- Disorganized or catatonic behavior.
- Negative symptoms (emotional flatness, apathy, lack of speech)
In order to cope with such mental disorders, there are different types of treatments
- Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)
- Exposure Therapy
- Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT)
- Medication – Medication does not cure mental illness. However, it may help with the management of symptoms. Medication paired with psychotherapy is the most effective way to promote recovery.
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EDUCATING
Educating yourself on Mental Illness and why it’s important
Mental Illness & the talk of health in general, whether it’s in the physical or mental context is still seen as taboo. Quite often the talk of Mental Illness comes in waves of awareness days and campaigns for selected occasions, although these are great ways to raise awareness, in reality, mental illness and the effects of such life-changing mental disorders are common and suffered by so many every single day so should be normal to speak of daily. Mental illness is common, if it isn’t something that you’ve been diagnosed with then it’s highly likely that you’ve had contact with someone who has, sometimes maybe without even realising so because Mental Illness presents in over 200 different types, with different symptoms in each individual, ranging from mild to severe.
The importance of educating ourselves also comes with how prevalent Mental Illness is in our society today.
These figures were updated on Mind in 2016. A survey was taken in England to show the number of people who have different types of mental health problems – taken every seven years.
| Generalised anxiety disorder | 5.9 in 100 people |
| Depression | 3.3 in 100 people |
| Phobias | 2.4 in 100 people |
| OCD | 1.3 in 100 people |
| Panic disorder | 0.6 in 100 people |
| Post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) | 4.4 in 100 people |
| Mixed anxiety and depression | 7.8 in 100 people |
In order to grow and do better as individuals and a society, we have to EDUCATE. First, it begins with you as an individual. You can then try and encourage members of your family or friends to do some research as well. Even if you don’t suffer from mental illness personally or haven’t had close connections to someone who does, it doesn’t mean you can’t research these disorders.
Websites & places that educate about Mental Health
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Mental Health is something that continually changes as you get older. Speaking up about your struggles and even RECOGNISING that you do need help with your mental health is such a massive step. Even if you haven’t reached the stage of verbalising your needs, rest assured you are heading in a great direction and doing so well for acknowledging your struggles.
Taking the time to EDUCATE yourself about Mental Health & different Illnesses is a step towards making a positive difference with your own health and others.
That concludes my second post for this section of, Managing Mental Health & Where to Get Help
Part 1: R ecognition ✔
Part 2: E ducating ✔
Part 3: D — — — — — — — — — (including a Suprise Interview)
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Thanks for stopping by.
Laura,
XOXO
Laura Spoonie Blogs 
“Medication paired with psychotherapy is the most effective way to promote recovery.” AMEN!!! I love Psychology Today! In addition to being a great place to find articles and information, you can also find a therapist and psychiatrist on there (at least I know that to be true in the US- I have a therapist profile… Just deactivated until I go into private practice). Loving this series!
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YES, YES, YES! They have extension web addresses for different countries. Going to link it in one of my #MHA articles soon.
I also came across a spreadsheet that mentions affordable Therapy in the US. Going to sieve through it to check properly and make light of it for others. When I finish I’ll email it to you.
That is so great! How long have you had your profile on Psychology Today?
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For about a year and a half. I stopped paying the bill though, so it’s not active at the moment. I don’t really need it til I launch my own business.
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