The Role Of Mental Health In The United States

In the United States alone, approximately 20% of Americans experience a mental illness in a given year, and 1 in 25 Americans live with a serious mental illness that significantly impacts one or more life activities (NAMI.org, 2015). These disorders span across the lifetime, many starting by the age of 14, and mental health care is often the root of progress or hindrance for a person whose life is impacted by these unseen disorders. Though it is not always evident that an individual is experiencing mental illness, these complications influence the daily lives of millions of people worldwide, regardless of age, culture, race, religion, or other delineation. As a result, it is vital that this sector of healthcare be thoroughly examined for inefficiencies,

American history is littered with tails of reform and revolution. Earlier on in America’s young life, revolution included war, struggle for basic human rights and dignity as well as radical tactics taken by the public. As time went on Americans learned that revolution and reform could occur through the government systems that our forefathers had put in place. The battle for human rights has all but ended but the way in which Americans wage war is a different story altogether. Now American’s fight for better public healthcare, equal rights for homosexual individuals and couples, and stricter standards for social welfare programs.

Statistical data reveal that 25% of adult Americans have a mental illness, and more than half of the U.S. population will develop a mental illness at some point during their lifetime (CDC; APA). "Major Depressive disorder is a leading cause of disability for ages 15-44. Major depressive disorder affects approximately 14.8 million American adults, or 6.7 percent of the U.S. population age 18 and older in a given year” while anxiety disorder affects …40 million…adults ages 18 and older…” (NIMH; APA). Comparatively, cardiovascular, diabetes, epilepsy, obesity, cancer, and asthma, and other chronic diseases are surfacing with increased frequency among the mentally ill (CDC; APA). The aforementioned finding elicits question about medical

In the wake of horrific crimes like Sandy Hooks shootings, and the Aurora movie theater shooting and the countless others that have plagued the Nation America is scared and heart broken. the government and the country are frantically trying to find answer and solutions in issues like guns to prevent these unspeakable acts of violence. But even though all these men have had the weapons to achieve their acts, they have had one more characteristic that's sometimes overlooked in common, their unstable minds and serious mental illness. Mental illness with its brutal stigma and awful history seems to be overlooked in the public's eyes when looking at real problems And i believe that mental illness is important in the prevention of these

The United States has one of the highest percent of mental illness in the world. According to “Transformation Prescribed for Mental Health Care in the USA” by Desmond Avery, “In any given year, 5-7% of all American adults have a serious mental illness, and 5-9% of all children have a serious emotional disturbance.” (Avery 695). These are staggering numbers, at this rate, some form of mental illness effects nearly every family in America. The U.S. on average spends about 113 billion dollars on mental care each year. This puts them right with other developed countries on spending, however, a clear majority of that spending goes to keeping the mentally ill medicated, instead of counseling or rehabilitation. More of American spending goes to prescription drugs than any other country in the world. Another issue with American mental healthcare is that mental health professionals are far scarcer than any other type of medical professional. Mental health care is also extremely expensive in the United States. Many people who cannot afford premium insurance are not subject to the best treatment available, or are not properly treated at all. With all these factors, mental health patients in the United states are not getting the treatment they need. Many go completely untreated. With many issues associated with healthcare in the United States, there seems to be no solution in

The nationwide health promotion and disease prevention plan, Healthy People 2020, recognizes that mental health promotion and mental health reduction as one of the most significant health objectives. Statistic indicated that mental health disorders are the leading cause of disability in United States and Canada, while suicide is the 11th leading cause of death that killed approximately 30,000 American each year (“Mental Health and Mental Disorders”, n.d.). The United States Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) has commended series of guideline once patients are identified with mental health disorder.

Before we can delve into the policy side, it is important to understand what mental health is; specifically, mental illness. So, what exactly is mental illness? The National Alliance on Mental Health, or NAMI; defines, mental illness as ‘a condition that affects a person's thinking, feeling or mood. Such conditions may affect someone's ability to relate to others and function each day,’. Mental illness is non-discriminatory, it has the potential to affect everyone regardless of race/ethnicity, sex and gender, sexual orientation, religion, age, and socioeconomic status. This is one of the many reasons that makes this issue so important.

Mental illness, a medical condition, are disorders that can affect people’s mood, thinking, and behavior. Many people don’t pay much attention to these disorders, because they are not familiar with psychiatric illness. Not paying attention to detecting and treating mental illness is an issue, because it can increase the risk of violence more than treated mentally ill people. For example, the failure to treat the ill can have dire consequences because it can increase the risk of mass shootings. Being able to recognize the signs of mental illness is important to help prevent incidents because most people are not informed well and don’t recognize the symptoms of mental illness on time, which can be very risky to the community. Although many crimes could be linked with mental health issues, not all mentally ill are dangerous.

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According to the Mayo Clinic, mental illness can be described as a “wide range of mental health conditions, disorders that affect an individual’s mood, thinking and behavior”. It is important for society to be aware of the situation so that precautions are created in order to help monitor the issue that mental illness has on public health. Mental illness supplies a substantial burden of disease worldwide. According to S. Marshall Williams, of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, approximately 450 million people suffer from mental disorders. It is extremely important to understand the hardship that come with those who possess issues regarding mental illness as it correlates with public health and violence. It is imperative to understand that mental health is fundamental to overall health and well-being and should be treated with the same urgency as physical health (Williams, 2005). Society should know that mental illness can influence the onset, progression, and outcome of other illnesses and often associates with health risk behaviors such as substance abuse, tobacco use, and physical idleness which can often lead to crime as a way for individuals to release their frustrations (Williams, 2005). Moreover, it is important to identify the early onset of risky behavior in order to create a blockade to prevent negative acts from occurring. Although there is a possibility of violence committed by those who may have mental illness, the public is no less accustomed to

The burden of mental illness in the United States (US) is among the highest of all diseases, and mental disorders are among the most common causes of disability (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2014). People with untreated mental health disorders are at high risk for many unhealthy and unsafe behaviors, including substance abuse, violent behavior, and suicide. Suicide is the 11th leading cause of death in the United States for all age groups and the second leading cause of death among people age 25 to 34 (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2014). As defined in Healthy People 2020 (HP2020), the goal is a 10 percent improvement in suicide rates (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2014). Increasing mental health

All through my childhood and especially in present day, I have always wondered why people act the way they act. I’ve seen people intentionally hurt the ones they love and react unexpected to situations in times of insecurity, conflict and even joy. I’ve seen and heard of mass shootings, tragic events and international tragedies occur the past years. Although it may have different purposes, messages, and targets, it has all concluded to the perpetrator/s dealing with mental illnesses. When people hear the words mental illness their first thought is most likely a negative one. What people fail to realize is that the stigma on mental illness is contributing to these devastating outcomes. I believe if highlighting the importance of mental health, recognizing signs of mental illness and knowing how to not only handle but understand people struggling with their mental health in a positive, empathetic and level-headed way is extremely necessary and important. The majority of people in the U.S. believe the problems are guns and how easily it is to obtain firearms without a background check of any sort. Even though I agree to an extent, it is likely that if you have a mental illness and may have been bullied, belittled and shamed because of it then you have mastered the art of holding things in. Just like anyone else, people have breaking points. Our illnesses do not define us but they have a way of controlling us. A mentally ill individual may not see things as logical or as clear. We need to understand the signs and how these illnesses work. We need to educate students, teachers, parents and any human being what it is, what triggers it, and how we can help in situations of breakdowns. I strongly believe this starts with our children. In teaching our children to be kind, to empathize with things they don’t understand and to serve others, we are showing them to not bully, belittle or exclude the unknown or the

Thousands of people end up in the emergency room each year for some kind of injury that can be traced back to the individual’s mental health. These people are told that they should get help if it is a big problem in their life, but where should they turn? Most health care plans do not offer mental health care because mental health is not considered to be essential. What is, or is not essential is relative to the person who has health care. Mental health is just as important as physical health, and today, more, and more people are seeing the importance of mental health, and many more today are seeking the help that they need.

Just as disorders and illnesses affecting the heart are generally classified as heart diseases, in the same context, mental illness is a general phrase used for a group of illnesses affecting cognition (Department of Health, 2015). People faced with mental illness are been stigmatized and assumed by the society to be dangerous, dirty, worthless, and unpredictable. This amongst other reasons is why most people refuse the introduction of a mental health clinic in the community (Meadows et al., 2012). Even though Patient with severe mental illness treated in the community have shown stability and at the same time reduced repeated hospital admission (Kisely & Campbell, 2014). Yet, some are against it because of its method of treatment which allows mental health professionals to treat the mentally ill without their consent, which in turn, deprives them of their basic human rights (Kisely & Campbell, 2014).

A major concern for our group is the lack of care for people with mental illness. A 2014 report from Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, shows that nearly one in five adults experienced mental illness in 2013 (Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, 2014). According to the Mayo Clinic, “Mental illness refers to a wide range of mental health conditions — disorders that affect your mood, thinking and behavior. Examples of mental illness include depression, anxiety disorders, schizophrenia, eating disorders and addictive behaviors” (Mayo Clinic Staff, 2014). One in 17 live with a serious mental illness, and every year more than 800,000 people die from suicide. Each day about 22 veterans die from suicide (Shane III, 2014). Our team believes this topic is trying to be addressed, but much more needs to be done. We wanted to take at deeper look at people in that have mental illnesses, including children, veterans, and the elderly.