Mental Illness

Note: The information on this page was provided by the Canadian Psychiatric Association.

According to the Canadian Psychiatric Association, one in five people will suffer from a mental illness at some time during his/her life. The Association defines mental illness as significant clinical patterns of behavior or emotions that are associated with some level of distress, suffering, or impairment. These patterns can affect a person's ability to function at school or work, and to interact with colleagues, friends, and family. At the root of mental illness is behavioral, psychological, or biological dysfunction, or a combination thereof.

Because of the stigma associated with mental illness, many people do not seek treatment. However, mental illness is a medical problem that can be treated. Currently, many people diagnosed as mentally ill are cared for by a treatment team. This team could be composed of psychiatrists, psychologists, psychiatric nurses, social workers, occupational and recreational therapist, family and friends, self-help and support groups. The team works together to establish and implement treatment goals in accordance with the needs and wishes of the person with the mental illness.

Myths and Facts

Myth Fact

People with a mental illness are psycho, dangerous and have to be locked away. Many individuals with a mental illness can have difficulty coping with day to day living. When in great distress, such individuals are at greater risk of harming themselves than others.

People with a mental illness never get better. With the right kind of help, many people with a mental illness do recover and go on to lead healthy, productive, and satisfying lives.

You can tell if someone has a mental illness by looking in their eyes. Although there are many signs and symptoms for when someone may be developing a mental illness, diagnosis is a difficult task best undertaken by health professionals. Quick judgments and stereotypes are poor substitutes for comprehensive assessments by professionals.

Only crazy people see shrinks. People of all ages and all walks of life seek help from a variety of mental health professionals including psychiatrists. Seeking out and accepting help are signs of coping and of preventing situations from getting worse.

Schizophrenia

Schizophrenia is a mental illness that affects approximately one in a hundred people, occurs with equal frequency in men and women, and occurs most often in the 16 to 30 year age group. Approximately 10% of people who suffer from schizophrenia commit suicide.

Schizophrenia is an organic brain disease. The causes are not known, but there are several theories like genetic causes and oversensitivity to or overproduction of dopamine.

Characteristics of Schizophrenia

often starts slowly
symptoms usually appear in adolescence or early adulthood
at first, symptoms seem more bewildering than serious
in the early stages, people with schizophrenia may find themselves losing the ability to relax, concentrate or sleep
work or school, as well as personal appearance begins to suffer
the person may start to shut out long time friends
may be one or more episodes where the person talks in ways that may be difficult to understand and/or start having unusual perceptions
once it has appeared, schizophrenia tends to appear in cycles of remission and relapse
people with schizophrenia may experience
delusions — false beliefs that have no basis in reality
hallucinations — most often hearing voices that comment on behavior, are insulting or give commands, less often seeing or feeling things that aren't there
ambivalence — the inability to make decisions because of conflicting feelings
lack of motivation, interest or energy
social withdrawal
thought disorders

disorganized thinking resulting in jumping randomly from one unrelated topic to another in conversation

depression and anxiety

Anxiety

People with an anxiety disorder may have a number of physical symptoms, including shakiness, muscle aches, sweating, clod and clammy hands, dizziness, fatigue, racing heart and dry mouth. Emotionally they may feel irritable and apprehensive, fearing that bad things are about to happen to themselves or to their loved ones. Often anxiety leaves its sufferers practically disabled. At its most debilitating, anxiety can keep sufferers trapped in their homes, too frightened to leave.

Types of Anxiety

Phobia — terror, dread or panic that overwhelms anxiety sufferers when they are faced with a feared object, situation or activity.

Panic Disorder — suffering sudden intense overwhelming terror for no apparent reason. This fear is accompanied by physical symptoms including sweating, heart palpitations, hot or cold flashes, choking or smothering and feelings of unreality.

Obsessive Compulsive Disorder — using obsessions to cope with anxieties: repeated, unwanted thoughts or compulsive behaviors, rituals that get out of control.

Post Traumatic Stress Disorder — affects people who have survived a severe and unusual physical or mental trauma. Victims may re-experience that traumatic events through nightmares, or flashbacks. Other symptoms can be emotional numbness, general anxiety, inability to sleep, poor memory and difficulty concentrating or completing tasks.

Depression

Depression is a mental illness that can occur at any age and is diagnosed in one in four women and one in ten men.

Signs of Depression

continuing feelings of sadness, helplessness, hopelessness and irritability
inability to keep up with the basic parts of life such as personal care, household chores, friendships and social activities.
noticeable change of appetite that causes a significant gain or loss of weight
problems sleeping or waking
sudden loss of interest in activities previously enjoyed
an inability to concentrate and make decisions
fatigue
feelings of worthlessness and guilt
headaches and stomachaches

Manic Depression

Manic depression often first occurs in the late teens or early twenty's, and is found in approximately one percent of the population. Manic depression is characterized by alternating periods of depression and mania.

Symptoms of Manic Depression

excessive energy
racing flights of ideas
vigorous denial that anything is wrong
pressured speech
grandiose thought or inflated self-esteem
overspending
high heart rate and irregular breathing
alternating decreases and increases of sleep
impaired judgment
extreme irritability
rapid, unpredictable mood changes

Youth and Mental Illness

Adolescents throughout the world are at high risk for mental illness. Research conducted in Ontario indicated that one out of five 4 to 16 year olds suffered from some type of psychiatric disorder.

Common Mental Illness seen in Adolescents

Depression — For some adolescents, feeling down and blue can be feelings that do not seem to go away. Life can become a chore if these symptoms remain. People feeling this way may not realize that these symptoms are potentially treatable. Suicidal thinking and behaviors are strongly associated with depression in adolescence. Suicide is the second most common killer of Canadian teens. Any mention of suicidal thoughts and actions should be taken seriously.

Anxiety — Physical symptoms like headaches, stomach aches and racing heart can be associated with anxiety. Feelings of fear and dread can become so intense that a person is kept from going to school, being in a group and from other activities that would not be a problem otherwise.

Eating Disorders — Anorexia nervosa and bulimia are becoming increasingly common amongst adolescents. Both disorders are characterized by a preoccupation with food, and a feeling of lack of control over aspects of one’s life. Adolescents with anorexia suffer from low self esteem and an irrational belief of being overweight, regardless of how thin s/he becomes. Bulimics binge on large quantities of food and then induce vomiting or take a large number of laxatives. Eating disorders can be fatal. Adolescents with these problems need to receive help.

Conduct Disorders — These are a complicated group of behavioural and emotional problems. Adolescents with these problems have difficulty following rules and behaving in a socially acceptable way. The major problem is one of anger. They are often aggressive to peers and adults, and may lie, steal, destroy property or be sexually inappropriate.

Indicators of Possible Psychiatric Problems in Adolescents

marked drop in school performance or increase in absenteeism
excessive use of alcohol and/or drugs
marked changes in sleeping and/or eating habits
many physical complaints (headaches, stomach aches)
consistent aggressive or non-aggressive violations of rights of others: opposition to authority, skipping school, thefts, vandalism, etc.
withdrawal from friends, family, and regular activities
depression shown by continued, prolonged negative mood and attitude, often accompanied by poor appetite, difficulty sleeping or thoughts of death
frequent outbursts of anger and rage
low energy level, poor concentration, complaints of boredom
loss of enjoyment in what used to be favourite activities
unusual neglect of personal appearance
intense fear of becoming obese with no relationship to actual body weight
uncharacteristic delinquent, thrill seeking or promiscuous behaviour
marked personality change
comments about feeling rotten inside, wanting to end things, and soon no longer being a problem for others

Treatment

Can include:

psychotherapy — individual, family, group
skills programs — learning, social skills, behaviour
psychiatric medication
variety of inpatient, outpatient, or day treatment settings, including special schools, residential placements, hospitals, private offices or community clinics

Links

Canadian Mental Health Association

Schizophrenia Society of Canada

The Schizophrenia Homepage

The Anxiety-Panic Internet Resource

Depression.Com

Wing of Madness: A Depression Guide

Walkers in Darkness

Anorexia Nervosa and Bulimia Association

Eating Disorders: Anorexia and Bulimia Nervosa

Acknowledgments

The information on this page was provided by the University of Alberta Student Helpers, who in turn received the majority of the information from the Canadian Psychiatric Association and the Schizophrenia Society of Alberta.

Myth	Fact
People with a mental illness are psycho, dangerous and have to be locked away.	Many individuals with a mental illness can have difficulty coping with day to day living. When in great distress, such individuals are at greater risk of harming themselves than others.
People with a mental illness never get better.	With the right kind of help, many people with a mental illness do recover and go on to lead healthy, productive, and satisfying lives.
You can tell if someone has a mental illness by looking in their eyes.	Although there are many signs and symptoms for when someone may be developing a mental illness, diagnosis is a difficult task best undertaken by health professionals. Quick judgments and stereotypes are poor substitutes for comprehensive assessments by professionals.
Only crazy people see shrinks.	People of all ages and all walks of life seek help from a variety of mental health professionals including psychiatrists. Seeking out and accepting help are signs of coping and of preventing situations from getting worse.