Poor mental health literacy inevitably leads to the even greater issue of mental health stigma. Those who don’t know mental health or mental disorder often hold detrimental and often false views toward those with mental health issues. These negative feelings lead to embarrassment, anger, and feelings of unworthiness.
The negative views toward mental health issues may lead to bullying. Children with such issues may be excluded from play, excluded from school, or made fun of in general. They may be teased, taunted, or ridiculed for trivial things. Others may turn to self-medication. This in turn leads to addictive behaviors that may lead to worse conditions like drug abuse.
Children with mental health issues may be victims of cruel and abusive behaviors at home, in the playground, or at school. Their psychological health may be compromised by teasing and taunting, rejection and isolation. These children often feel worthless and thus withdraw completely from society. Some become alcohol or drug addicts and some may become violent.
Children with mental health issues should seek professional help. There are many treatment options for children with mental illnesses. Unfortunately, many children will remain untreated and this is very risky. If left untreated, these children can develop serious psychological disorders like schizophrenia and bipolar disorder in adulthood.
A survey conducted in 2021 showed that one out of every four children in England have anxiety disorder and one in ten have depression. An alarming twenty percent of girls between the ages of twelve and fifteen have an anxiety disorder and one in five have depression. More worrying is the fact that one in seven children have both anxiety and depression. This means that ten percent of all children in the United Kingdom have mental health issues that need professional help.
The condition is very treatable and a proper diagnosis is required. Only then can a proper treatment plan be devised to tackle the problem. Many children with mental health issues are prescribed with anti-depressants and anti-anxiety drugs to reduce their symptoms. However, the side effects can be quite severe. Moreover, the medications are not able to find the root cause of the problem and hence the symptoms return. Hence, in order to give effective relief to the child and prevent the recurrence of the condition, a mental health monitoring poll is conducted.
A child’s social and emotional development is impaired by severe depression or anxiety. A child who suffers from this mental health problem is not able to function normally in social situations. One of the major problems associated with this mental health problem is suicidal behavior. Studies show that suicides among children under the age of 18 are almost three times higher than the rate in the general population. Tracking Poll conducted on a yearly basis and conducting interviews at regular intervals helps in identifying the pattern of suicide attempts by children and adolescents.
If left untreated, social isolation is another serious effect of mental disorder in children. Children with mental illness often have trouble making friends and developing close relationships. The low self-esteem and frequent anxiety about school performance and relationships lead to social isolation. The physical health also deteriorates due to severe depression or anxiety. Children with such problems often suffer from poor eating habits and a lack of exercise. Thus, the physical health requires special care during childhood.
Psychological problems are more widespread than physical illnesses. Anxiety, depression and other psychological illnesses can negatively impact the well-being of a person. Tracking Polls and interviews at periodic intervals to help identify patterns regarding the change in the well-being of individuals diagnosed with mental health issues.
A significant proportion of the population suffers from one or more mental health disorders. In fact, one out of every 100 persons in the US is affected by at least one disorder at some point in their life. The symptoms vary from mild to severe mental health disorders. For instance, depression is characterized by sadness, anxiety and thoughts of suicide.
The prevalence of mental illnesses in the US at any given point in time varies from state to state. Thus, it is important to identify the various types of mental health disorders in adults ages 18 years and above. It is estimated that approximately 20 million adults in the US alone suffer from one or more mental disorders. The cost incurred on mental illness treatment is enormous. Therefore, proper identification and proper treatment of mental disorders in adults ages 18 years and above is crucial.