Tag Archive for: Mental Illness

What Are The Warning Signs of Mental Illness?

Symptoms and warning signs of mental illness will vary depending on the type and severity of the condition. You don’t need to have every item on the list below to know that there may be something wrong;  or have the exact same warning signs as someone else.

Some general symptoms that may suggest a mental disorder include:

  • Confused thinking, disorientation or fogginess
  • Difficulty concentrating, learning, and staying on task
  • Inability to carry out daily activities
  • Prolonged sadness or increased irritability
  • Extreme highs and lows in mood
  • Excessive fear, worrying or anxiety
  • Difficulty handling stress
  • Social withdrawal from friends and activities
  • Dramatic changes in eating or sleeping habits
  • Changes in eating habits that lead to weight loss or gain
  • Strong feelings of anger or aggressive behavior
  • Delusions or hallucinations
  • Inability to cope with daily problems and activities
  • Suicidal thoughts
  • Abuse of drugs / alcohol
  • Self-medicating
  • Changes in sleep patterns
  • Psychosomatic “illnesses” that can’t be diagnosis by a doctor

Knowing the early warning signs and symptoms of mental illness can help you get the help that is needed before life spirals out of control.  These warning signs, particularly when occurring together, are an indicator that it is time to contact a mental health organization, doctor, health care practitioner, family member or friend and seek help.

Remember there are always organizations and professionals that can help.  If you’re experiencing a lot of warning signs and feel like you’re nearing a crisis, contact your doctor or mental health provider.  You can also contact your local crisis centre.

Crisis centres will have trained people that can connect you with local services, including emergency mental health services. In BC, call the BC Crisis Line 310-6789 (do not add 604, 778 or 250 before the number) to talk to someone without a wait or busy signal. They’re available 24 hours a day.  You can also go to the emergency room or call 911.

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Mental Health Treatments and Therapies

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While each method/therapy uses a different approach, the goal is to help the client with the issues that brought them to counseling.  The therapy or treatment plans will depend upon the type of mental health disorder they are struggling with, what their individual needs are, and what therapy their counselor or doctor selects for their treatment plan.

Mental health therapies offer:

  • Understanding behaviors and emotions that contribute to the illness, and how to modify them
  • Understanding and identifying problems or events that contribute to the illness and help understand which aspects of those problems can be solved or improved
  • Regaining a sense of control by learning coping techniques and skills

Different approaches to therapy include:

Psychodynamic therapy is based on the assumption that a person is having emotional problems because of unresolved, generally unconscious conflicts, often stemming from childhood. The goal of this type of therapy is to recognize those difficulties and to find ways to resolve them or cope with them better. Psychoanalysis involves an intense, open-ended exploration of a patient’s feelings, often with multiple sessions in a week.

Psychodynamic therapies help patients:

  • to explore the full range of their emotions
  • to talk about feelings that are troubling or feelings that they may not have acknowledged in the past
  • focus on recognizing and addressing defense mechanisms — reactions and behaviors they use

Interpersonal therapy focuses on the behaviors and interactions a patient has with family and friends. This therapy is used to improve communication skills and increase self-esteem.  This type of program only lasts a few months, and works well for clients dealing with mourning, relationship conflicts, major life events, and social isolation.

Psycho-dynamic and interpersonal therapies help patients resolve;

  • Loss,
  • Relationship conflicts
  • Role transitions

Cognitive-behavioral therapy helps people with mental illness to identify and change inaccurate perceptions that they may have of themselves and the world around them. The purpose of this form of therapy is to change the thought processes therefore changing negative behavior.

Cognitive-behavioral therapy is recommended for patients:

  • Who think and behave in ways that trigger and perpetuate mental illness
  • Who suffer from depression / anxiety disorders
  • Who the mental illness causes suffering, or a disability

Medication therapy dose not cure mental illness, however, it can be used to in manage symptoms of the illness and can help a person manage their daily lives.  Most treatment plans include both medication and psychotherapy.

Commonly used classes of prescription medications include:
  • Antidepressants
  • Anti-anxiety medications
  • Mood-stabilizing medications
  • Antipsychotic medications
There are many different treatment options available, and no one treatment plan or therapy will work for everyone. These option range from psychotherapy, medication, complementary & alternative medicine, support groups & peer support groups, and hospitalization or treatment centres.
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Triggers That Can Lead To Mental Illness

imHaving positive mental health means there is a balance in all parts of your life. (social, physical, spiritual, emotional, financial, and mental).

Mental health issues can cause a big change in the way a person thinks, feels, acts, and their ability to function on a daily basis. Mental illness has a huge affect on the quality of life of people living with these illnesses.

There is usually no one cause of a mental health problem:

  1. biological: chemistry in the brain or other body system
  2. psychological: issues with thought or emotion
  3. social: life events and stresses

Many factors can potentially trigger a period of poor mental health:

  • childhood abuse, trauma, or neglect
  • social isolation or loneliness
  • death of  a loved one
  • severe or long-term stress
  • unemployment or losing your job
  • social disadvantage, poverty or debt
  • homelessness or poor housing
  • caring for a family member
  • a long-term physical health condition
  • drug and alcohol misuse
  • domestic violence
  • significant trauma as an adult
  • genetic factors

There are two common forms of treatment for mental illness: talking treatments and medication.

  1. Talking treatments provide a regular time and space for you to talk about your thoughts and experiences and explore difficult feelings with a trained professional. This can include general counseling, psychotherapy, cognitive behavioral therapy, or psychological therapy.  These treatment options can help deal with a specific problem,and help cope with upsetting memories or experiences while develop helpful ways of dealing with  day-to-day life.
  1. Medication treatment is available by prescription medication.  Prescription medication doesn’t cure mental health problems, but can reduce many symptoms, which will help the individual cope with daily life.  Some common medication used for mental health are: antidepressants, anti-anxiety medication, sleeping pills, mood stabilizers and anti-psychotic medication.

It can be hard to recognize whether someone’s behavior is a result of an emotional incident, or a signal of mental illness. Short-lived feelings of sadness, loneliness or stress are part of our every day experiences, and help us  cope with more traumatic experiences in the future, however, when these emotions remain unchanged over time and start to interfere with day-to-day life, they could be signs of mental illness.

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