It’s World Mental Health Day, so let’s start a meaningful conversation: what is mental health?
Mental health can be seen as a continuum, ranging from healthy or ‘good’, to unhealthy or ‘mental illness/disorder'.
But what is good mental health? Good mental health is a state of well-being in which the individual realises his or her own abilities, can cope with the normal stresses of life, can work productively and fruitfully, and is able to make a contribution to his or her own community.
On the other end of the spectrum, mental disorder or mental illness is a diagnosable illness that affects a person’s thinking, emotional state and behaviour, disrupts a person’s ability to work or carry out daily activities and engage in satisfying personal relationships.
So, why do we have a day of awareness dedicated to mental health?
Surveys have found that in Australia alone, 1 in 5 or 20% of people aged 16-85 years of age had a common mental illness at some stage in the preceding 12 months. The table below gives a breakdown of these conditions across the population:
|
Type of mental illness | Male | Female | Total pop |
Anxiety disorders | 10.8% | 17.9% | 14.4% |
Depression and bipolar disorder | 5.3% | 7.1% | 6.2% |
Substance use disorders | 7% | 3.3% | 5.1% |
ANY common mental illness | 17.6% | 22.3% | 20% |
Table 1: Percentage of Australians aged 16-85 with a common mental illness in any 1 year
It is worth mentioning that these statistics come from diagnosed and reported cases, and it is very likely that the numbers are higher. In fact, research has shown that of individuals suffering from mental illness, only approximately 35% seek professional help. Further to this, those suffering from one mental illness will often develop a second (e.g. person with depression develops anxiety); approximately 8.5% of people with one condition develop two or more.
Mental illness is the 3rd biggest source of disease burden in Australia, following closely behind cancer and cardiovascular disease. It is a major cause of ongoing disability for Australians of all ages. The ongoing impact of mental illness is significant, and the stigma and discrimination individuals often face only add to the burden.
Mental health does not have the visibility of the bandages associated with wounds, the cast of a fracture, or the stitches of surgery. As a result, it is often downplayed, dismissed, ignored and even stigmatised by those without personal experience or insight into the weight it carries. In reality, mental illness should be received with the same level of respect and significance we give to physical illness, but that is not our current reality.
These stats, among many more, are one of the reasons we acknowledge and engage in World Mental Health Day, on October 10th. We can all do better to reduce the stigma surrounding mental illness. The first step in the right direction begins with education and openness. There are so many resources out there to improve your knowledge (not to mention your friends, your family, and your workplace) around mental health awareness, so start the conversations and start educating yourself on how you can help reduce the taboo around talking about mental health.
Mental Health Resources (including but not limited to):
- Lifeline 13 11 14
- Kids Help Line 1800 551 800
- Men’s Line 1300 789 978
- Panda (support for pregnancy and in the first year of childhood for families) 1300726 306
- Beyond Blue 1300 224 636
- Suicide Callback Service 1300 659 467
- Mental Health Triage Service 13 14 65 (SA specific) crisis line 24/7
Written by physiotherapist Rhyan Eason.
References
- Kitchener BA, Jorm AF, Kelly CM. Mental Health First Aid Manual. 4th ed. Melbourne: Mental Health First Aid® Australia 2022