History/Education
By Danielle Kabat
There are many reasons why individuals are diagnosed with mental illness and there are also many different types of mental illness but the most common are depression and anxiety. Mental illness isn’t an exact science and doctors cannot always detect the symptoms. However, some reasons why individuals are diagnosed with mental illness can be due to biological, psychological, environmental impacts.
Psychological impacts and traumatic events can cause a mental illness. Some factors that might contribute include emotion, physical or sexual abuse, suffered an early loss, neglect or poor social skills which makes it harder to relate to others. (Kim Foundation)
Biologically, a mental illness is described as an “abnormal chemical imbalance in the brain.” These chemicals in the brain are called neurotransmitters and their job is to help nerve cells communicate with one another. Unfortunately, if these are out of balance, your brain might interpret situations differently resulting in symptoms of mental illness. Also, genetics can play a part in mental illness due to the fact that it can run in the family. If a person had a family member who had been diagnosed with a mental illness, they are more susceptible to inheriting it. (Kim Foundation)
Environment impacts such as living below the poverty line, dysfunction family life and social expectations can affect a person’s mental health. Some social expectations that people suffer from currently is the perfection of actors and actresses. Females are supposed to be thin, perfect and pretty and males are supposed to be masculine, muscular and have no sense of emotions. People suffering from mental illness might feel they have low self-esteem and confidence issues. (Kim Foundation)
Mental illness affects about 1 in 4 people. Many individuals however are undiagnosed and just continue to cope with their symptoms. From the reported cases, approximately 1 in 25 adults in the US and 1 in 5 teenagers (13-18) suffer from mental illness. (Health Direct) Currently there are two guides, The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorder (DSM) and the International Classification of Diseases (ICD), that provide common symptoms and criteria for the classification of mental disorders. These manuals are used by health care professionals so they can use the patients emotions and experience to diagnose them. (NAMI)
References:
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Causes of mental illness. (2016). Retrieved from https://www.healthdirect.gov.au/causes-of-mental-illness
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What are the Causes of mental Illness? (n.d.) Retrieved from https://www.thekimfoundation.org/causes/html
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NAMI: National Alliance on Mental Illness (n.d.) Retrieved from https://www.mani.org/Learn-More/Mental-Health-By-the-Numbers