Facts
About Mental Illness
DANE
COUNTY
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Facts
About Mental Illness
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DANE
COUNTY
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BIPOLAR DISORDER - (also called manic depression) is characterized by extreme mood swings. Symptoms of the manic phase include boundless energy, racing thoughts, feelings of omnipotence and power, and possible delusions. Symptoms of depression usually follow the manic phase. Together, bipolar disorder and severe depression affect 6% of the population. SCHIZOPHRENIA - affects 1% of the population. Symptoms include hearing voices, delusions, illogical thinking, inappropriate emotions, poor concentration, withdrawal from family and friends, confused language and unusual behavior. It usually strikes young people between the ages of 16 and 25. SEVERE DEPRESSION - affects many people of all ages. Symptoms are significant changes in eating or sleeping patterns, feelings of worthlessness, guilt and hopelessness and difficulty concentrating. Depression is a major cause of suicide. |
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| Other Disabling Mental Illnesses - include severe anxiety, panic disorder, and obsessive-compulsive disorder. |
Help
is Available
A combination of a good support system, medication, therapy, and social and vocational rehabilitation has proven to be effective in treating these illnesses. |
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| Facts & Figures About
Mental Illness Editor's note: The following information was updated in January 2001 by NAMI's research department.. * Mental illnesses are health conditions characterized by alterations in thinking, mood, or behavior (or some combination) associated with distress and/or impaired functioning. i * Of American adults, 5.4 percent have a serious mental illness (SMI). ii* * Twenty-three percent of American adults (ages 18 and older) suffer from a diagnosable mental disorder in a given year, but only half report impairment of their daily functioning due to the mental disorder. Six percent of adults have addictive disorders alone, and three percent have both mental and addictive disorders. iii *Almost half of the adults with serious and persistent mental illnesses are between the ages of 25 and 44. iv * Approximately nine percent to 13 percent of children ages nine to 17 have a serious emotional disturbance with substantial functional impairment, and five percent to nine percent have a serious emotional disturbance with extreme functional impairment due to a mental illness. v * Not all mental disorders identified in childhood and adolescence persist into adulthood, even though the prevalence of mental disorders is almost the same percentage. A substantial number of children and adolescents recover from mental illness. vi * Four of the ten leading causes of disability in the United States and other developed countries are mental disorders, which include major depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, and obsessive-compulsive disorder. vii * The treatment success rate for a first episode of schizophrenia is 60 percent, 65 percent to 70 percent for major depression, and 80 percent for bipolar disorder. viii* * Of the 1,012,582 total hospital admissions in the U.S. in 1998, 261,903 (25.8 percent) were psychiatric admissions. ix * The total cost of mental health services in the U.S. was $148 billion in 1990. The direct cost of mental health services (treatment and rehabilitation costs) totaled $69 billion, and the indirect costs (lost productivity at work, school, or home due to disability or death) were estimated at $78.6 billion. x * Serious mental illnesses (SMI) interfere with employment. An estimated 57 percent of adults with SMI were not employed in 1990 compared to 29 percent of the general population. xi* * Approximately one-third of the estimated 600,000 homeless people in the United States have a severe mental illness. However, only one in 20 persons with a severe mental illness are homeless. xii * Only five percent to seven percent of homeless persons with a mental illness need to be institutionalized; most can live in the community with appropriate, supportive housing. xiii * In 1998, 283,800 people with mental illnesses were incarcerated in American prisons and jails. This is four times the number of people in state mental hospitals throughout the country. xiv * Sixteen percent (179,200) of state prison inmates, seven percent (7,900) of federal inmates, 16 percent (96,700) of people in local jails, and 16 percent (547,800) of probationers have reported a mental illness. xv * Mentally ill offenders are more likely than other offenders to have a history of substance abuse/dependency and a higher rate of homelessness and unemployment prior to incarceration. xvi |
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NAMI
Dane County also has fact filled brochures and pamphlets
on the following topics, they are available at our office.
If you would like more information please contact us and we will make sure you receive the information. |
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Adolescent Anger And Aggression ~ Alcoholism ~ Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder ~ Bipolar Disorder ~ Childhood Anger And Aggression ~ Co-Dependency ~ Depression ~ Depression In Children ~ Depression In The Elderly ~ Drug Abuse ~ Dual Diagnosis ~ Eating Disorders |
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Generalized Anxiety Disorder ~ Grief And Loss ~ Obsessive Compulsive Disorder ~ Panic Disorder ~ Personality Disorders ~ Phobias ~ Post-Traumatic Stress Disorders ~ Schizophrenia ~ Sexual Abuse Trauma ~ Teenage Depression ~ Teenage Substance Abuse |
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The National NAMI Web-site has a vast collection of information on the following subjects and more. To go to their web information page, click on anyone of the subjects below. |
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| Illnesses: Anorexia nervosa ANXIETY DISORDERS ADHD Autism/Asperger's BIPOLAR DISORDER Borderline personality disorder Bulimia nervosa MAJOR DEPRESSION Dissociative disorders Eating disorders Mental illness and substance abuse OBSESSIVE COMPULSIVE DISORDER Panic disorder Personality disorders Post-traumatic stress disorder Seasonal affective disorder SCHIZOPHRENIA Sleep disorders Suicide Tourette syndrome |
Treatments: General information on medications Medications used to stabilize mood in bipolar disorder Medications used to treat depression Medications used to treat OCD Medications used to treat schizophrenia or mania Psychosocial treatment and rehabilitation
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| Educate your self about mental illness - Seek out specialists, read books and contact organizations. Dealing with the unknown can be as difficult as dealing with the mental illness. | Become involved - Work with us to improve the quality of life for people with mental illness. Help erase stigma. | |||
| Seek
Professional Help - find someone who listens and communicates well, is available in times of crisis, and is trained in psychological/pharmacological medications. |
Learn
About Services - in
you community for people with mental illnessses.
NAMI Dane County can help. |
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| Talk about the illness with friends - with friends, family and NAMI members. Silence adds to the stigma that some people associate with mental ilness. | ||||
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Show
Respect - for
people with serious mental illness - the same way you would show respect
for any other person with a long term medical condition.
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Normalize
your life - as much aspossible. |
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The
following people have experienced one of the major mental illnesses
of Schizophrenia, Manic-Depression or Major Depression: |
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People With Mental Illnesses Enrich Our Lives . . . |
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