Mental illness statistics show that tens of millions of Americans struggle with a mental health condition each year. In 2018, 19.1% of Americans struggled with mental health problems, while another 11.4 million Americans battled a serious illness. Mental health disorders can be difficult to live with, especially if you don’t receive treatment. While mental health disorders can be successfully managed with treatment, when left unaddressed symptoms can become disabling. Mental health disorders impact your mood, cognition, and behaviors, which can create significant instability in your life. Another potential risk of avoiding treatment is that mental illness statistics list suicide as the second-leading cause of death among Americans ages 10 to 34.
Key Mental Illness Statistics
Anyone, regardless of age, race, gender, or background, can develop a mental health disorder. Early treatment is essential because mental health disorders can cause severe, even disabling symptoms. Severe or untreated depression, for example, can prevent you from working or going to school. Mood disorders can cause erratic behavior, which can diminish your quality of life. Some mental health disorders can cause lowered inhibitions, which increases your chances of using drugs or alcohol. In fact, mental illness statistics demonstrate that nearly 20% of people with mental illness also struggle with addiction. Having a mental health disorder can also make it difficult to cope with stress and major life changes. Poor coping skills or unstable moods can also damage your relationships or make it difficult to make friends. Poor mental health also impacts your physical health, as mental illness statistics show that having depression increases your chances of developing heart problems by 40%. Even though finding treatment is essential to recovery from a mental health disorder, according to mental illness statistics, only 43.3% struggling with mental illness receive help.
How Mental Health Disorders are Treated
Some mental health disorders, like depression, are curable if you receive treatment early enough. However, many other types of mental health disorders are chronic, meaning that you must learn how to manage your symptoms for the remainder of your life. Mental health treatment utilizes holistic and evidence-based therapies, such as:
- Cognitive and dialectical behavioral therapy
- Medications, such as SSRIs
- Individual counseling
- Relapse prevention education
- Acceptance and commitment therapy
- Art, music and nature therapy
When you suffer from a mental health disorder, triggers can cause your symptoms to worsen. Learning how to cope with triggers and develop healthy coping strategies is an important part of the recovery process. Many times, poor interpersonal or conflict resolution skills can make it difficult to maintain healthy relationships. Treatment can help you learn how better to communicate your thoughts, feelings, and emotions, which can make your life more manageable.
Finding Mental Health Treatment Today
Mental health disorders can make you feel trapped, alone, and frustrated. Mental illness statistics demonstrate that mental illness can negatively impact your personal life, health, and happiness. Finding treatment as soon as you begin to notice symptoms of a mental health disorder is an important way to improve your ability to recover. If you would like to learn more about your mental health treatment options, call us today at 844.875.5609.