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Mental Illnesses are Real

  • A mental illness is a health condition characterized by alterations in thinking, mood, or behavior (or some combination) associated with distress and/or impaired functioning. i
  • Many mental illnesses are caused by biochemical disturbances in the brain. ii
  • Some mental illnesses, such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), are clearly caused by exposure to an extremely stressful event, such as rape, combat, natural disaster or concentration camp. iii
  • Diagnoses that fall under the broad category of mental illnesses include anorexia nervosa, anxiety disorder, attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), autism, bipolar disorder, borderline personality disorder, bulimia nervosa, depression, dissociative disorders, obsessive-compulsive disorder, panic disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, seasonal affective disorder, schizophrenia, sleep disorders and Tourette syndrome.
  • Mental illnesses are the second leading cause of disability and premature mortality in the United States. Untreated and mistreated mental illnesses cost American business, governments and families $113 billion a year. iv
  • Mental illnesses, like other physical diseases, varies in degrees from moderate afflictions, such as mild depression, to more severe diseases like schizophrenia and bipolar disorder.
  • Psychiatric disorders are the No. 1 reason for hospital admissions nationwide. ii
  • One-quarter of all Social Security Disability payments are for individuals with a severe mental illness. ii
  • Some well-known people who have suffered from mental illness include Patty Duke, Marie Osmond, Tipper Gore, Carrie Fisher, Mike Wallace, Hugh Downs, Dick Cavett and Rosie O’Donnell. In addition, some of the most brilliant people in history suffered from severe mental illness, including Abraham Lincoln, Ludwig Van Beethoven, Thelonious Monk, Vincent Van Gogh, Isaac Newton, Winston Churchill, Michelangelo, and John Nash.

    i U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. 1999. Mental Health: A Report of the Surgeon General. Rockville, M.D.: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, Center for Mental Health Services, National Institutes of Health, National Institute of Mental Health.
    ii National Alliance for the Mentally Ill – Charlotte Web site. www.behavenet.com/nami-charlotte/sub/facts/htm.
    iii. Yehuda, 1999.
    iv. Labor Day 2001 Report by the Mental Health America (MHA).