When it comes to mental health and wellness, it’s not just enough to know how your own mental health is doing. There are plenty of other people in the world around you, and understanding how mental illness affects whole communities, societies, and the entire world matters. To people living day to day with mental illnesses, knowing you’re not alone can make a difference. Here are five facts and statistics you might not already know about mental health!

 

 

1. 1 in 5 Adults Experience Mental Illness Every Year

People rarely talk about how they’re struggling, but the numbers don’t lie—43.8 million adults experience the symptoms of mental illness every year in America. Illnesses can range from depression and anxiety to bipolar disorders, schizophrenia, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and dysthymic disorders, which are a form of long-term depression lasting for two years or longer.  When it comes to serious mental illnesses, categorized as mental illnesses that interfere with a person’s day to day accomplishment of basic tasks and major life activities, one in twenty-five people experience these illnesses, accounting for approximately 9.8 million people in America.

 

 

2. 50.5 Percent of Addicts Experience Co-Occurring Mental Illnesses

Co-occurring mental illnesses are also referred to as ‘comorbid,’ which is a grim-sounding term that simply accounts for mental illnesses existing alongside one another. Addiction is already a mental illness, but just a little over half the addicts surveyed by the National Association of Mental Illness (NAMI), also report comorbidity with another mental illness alongside their addiction. This can create a vicious cycle of one illness affecting the other, which is why it is so important to understand that more than one mental illness can afflict a person at a time, and seek treatment for both issues. It doesn’t make people weak to suffer more than one mental illness, and knowing that it’s possible is a major step towards handling the situation properly!

 

 

3. 41 Percent of Adults with Mental Illnesses Seek Help

Out of the 43.8 million adults with mental illnesses previously mentioned, less than half of them seek treatment. Typically, mental illness symptoms manifest before the age of 25, but getting treatment can take much longer due to a variety of factors—education, cost, and stigma. Only by educating others on mental health can people change these numbers!

 

 

4. 16 Million Adults Have Experienced Depression Just This Year

A major depressive episode, different from dysthymic disorders, is categorized by a two week long period of a number of depression symptoms. These symptoms can include, but are not limited to: trouble sleeping—irregular sleep habits, over-sleeping, insomnia—lack of appetite, rapid weight loss or gain, lack of motivation, nausea, and hair loss. With so many adults experiencing severe symptoms, anyone who suffers from even severe depression is not alone in their struggle, and when they seek help, trained professionals will know exactly what to do to help with whatever they need, from medication to therapy to wellness programs.

 

 

5. Only 3 to 5 Percent of Mentally Ill Individuals Resort to Violent Acts

Sometimes being mentally ill can make a person turn on the news and feel like the worst person in the world. Every news anchor, newspaper editor and online commentator says that people who hurt others are always just “mentally ill” people. There are calls for government watch lists, banning them from doing this, or that, and any other reasons for why someone might commit violence are swept under the rug. And the thing is, all of those people telling you that? They’re wrong.

 

 

People who suffer from a mental illness are about as likely as anyone else to commit a violent act. What is important is that people with severe mental illnesses are ten times more likely than the average person to be targeted by violence. In a way, this makes sense: many mentally ill people are vulnerable due to a host of factors—poor living conditions, lack of treatment, vulnerability in hospital programs or rehab facilities that may expose them to harsh treatment, and many severely mentally ill people may end up in prison for a host of reasons, none of which make them bad or violent people inherently. They are, as the statistics from government’s mental health site explains, more likely to be at risk from violence from other people.

           

The reason I elaborate on this point is not to frighten anyone with a mental illness. I don’t want anyone to feel alone or scared—that’s why I wrote this article. I want people to know that they’re not monsters who are one bad day away from causing harm to others. People with mental illness are at risk of problems and violence, but they are worthy of care, help, and support to lessen or negate that risk.  

 

 

There are plenty of things to learn about mental illness, and how it can impact your day to day life. I can’t tell you what’s best for you, an individual with mental illness, but I can assure you that you are not alone, and you are capable of receiving help for the symptoms and struggles of your mental illness!

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By Emily Ravaioli