Mental Illness, What You Need To Know

     Currently there are an estimated 61.5 million adults who are living with a mental illness. About 1 in 17 or 13.6 million of those suffer from a serious form of mental illness such as, bi polar disorder, schizophrenia, and major depression. Approximately 20% of today's youth ages 13 to 18 and 13% ages 8 to 15 will suffer from a major mental disorder in any given year. Those numbers are staggering. Sadly many will not get treatment. Approximately 60% of adults and 50% of youths will receive no treatment. About 50% of all serious mental illness starts by the age of 14 and about one third starts by age 24. Part of the problem is the stigma that surrounds mental illness. Too many of us do not know enough about mental illness and brush it off as not that serious. In reality it should be taken very seriously. Suicide is the 10th leading cause of death in America, the 3rd leading cause of death among people ages 10-14 and the 2nd leading cause of death in people ages 15 to 24, about 90% of those suffer from a mental illness. It is so important to take someone seriously if they make any indication of possibly committing suicide. Even if they make it seem like a joke.
     These are just a few different kinds of mental illness. Schizophrenia, Depression, Bi Polar Disorder, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), Anxiety, Panic Disorder, Obsessive-compulsive Disorder (OCD), Personality Disorders, Addictive and Impulse control Disorders, Eating disorders. There are so many more and sadly most people do not even realize it.  I will do a full list on a separate Post. Many suffer from more than 1. I tried to find the number but unfortunately could not. I myself suffer from 5 of those that are listed. Please you suspect or know of someone who is struggling with a mental illness, encourage them to get help. Sometimes all it takes is one person to say "I am here, and you are not alone" and mean it to make all the difference. If you or someone you know is at risk of committing suicide please call 1-800-273-TALK (8255). If you do not want to talk to someone you can text 741741 to talk to a Crisis Counselor anonymously.