Mental Health & Mental Illness
Mental health problems can affect people at any time of life and in different ways. They can include anxiety, depression, schizophrenia, self-harm and dementia.
When someone experiences severe and or enduring mental health problems they are sometimes described as mentally ill.
There is no universally agreed cut-off point between normal behaviour and behaviour associated with mental illness. The label mental illness is highly stigmatising. It encourages people to think of 'the mentally ill' as different, rather than seeing them as ordinary people who have more severe emotional difficulties to cope with. The term mental illness can misleadingly imply that all mental health problems are solely caused by medical or biological factors. In fact, most mental health problems result from a complex interaction of biological and social/psychological factors.
People’s perception of their mental health
As can be seen by the chart (above), Merthyr has the lowest mental health component scores in Wales which suggests that the people of Merthyr Tydfil rate their mental health & wellbeing lower than other counties in Wales. This is further supported by the numbers of people who report being treated for depression, anxiety or other mental illness where again, Merthyr Tydfil has the greatest proportion of people in that category (See chart below).
Prevalence
How many people in Britain experience mental health problems?
Estimates of the prevalence of mental distress in Britain vary from 1 in 4, to 1 in 6 people. One survey suggests that:
- around 300 people out of 1,000 will experience mental health problems every year in Britain
- 230 of these will visit a GP
- 102 of these will be diagnosed as having a mental health problem
- 24 of these will be referred to a specialist psychiatric service
- 6 of these 1000 will become inpatients in psychiatric hospitals.
(Source: based on figures from Goldberg, D. & Huxley, P, 1992, Common mental disorders a bio-social model, Routledge.)
Depression
Overall, depression occurs in 1 in 10 adults in Britain at any one time, according to the Office of National Statistics [ONS], matching closely figures from other studies.
A summary of studies on more severe depression gives a figure of 1 in 20 people at any one time who suffer major or ‘clinical’ depression. If these statistics are further broken down it can be seen that women have a higher prevalence of mixed anxiety and depressive disorder than men.
Dementia
20 per cent of people in the UK over the age of 80 and 6 per cent over the age of 65 are affected by dementia. The Alzheimer’s Society reports that dementia currently affects over 750,000 individuals in the UK. By 2010, the number is expected to rise to around 870,000.
Manic Depression (Bipolar disorder)
Most studies give a lifetime prevalence of 1 per cent for bipolar disorder and equal prevalence rates for men and women. However, hospital admission rates are much higher owing to the recurrent nature of the illness, although it is estimated that 20 per cent of people who have a first episode of manic depression do not get another.
Obsessive compulsive disorder
Around 1.2 per cent of the population of Britain have obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) at any one time, according to the ONS survey. Other studies suggest that up to 3 per cent of the population will experience OCD at some time in their lives – a much higher lifetime prevalence than has been previously assumed.
Schizophrenia
Most studies show a lifetime prevalence for schizophrenia of just under 1 per cent, and prevalence rates of around 3 per 1,000 of the population at any one time. Prevalence rates are the same for men and women, but age and gender are important factors as women tend to develop the illness at a slightly older age.
Self Harm
Self-harm is a broad term. People may injure or poison themselves by scratching, cutting or burning their skin, by hitting themselves against objects, or taking a drug overdose. It may also take less obvious forms, including taking risks, developing an eating problem, such as anorexia or bulimia, abusing alcohol or drugs, or simply not looking after their own emotional or physical needs.
Suicide
Although the overall rate of suicide is falling, there are more than 4,700 suicides in England and Wales each year. Many more suicide attempts are made each year, and at least 1 person in every 100 appearing in hospital after a suicide attempt will succeed within a year, and up to 5 per cent do so over the following decade. Suicide rates for men are higher than for women in all age groups, and currently men are almost three times more likely than women to commit suicide.
In MerthyrTydfil whilst the suicide rate is higher than the Welsh average (see chart) it is not in the ‘significantly high’ bracket.
In recent years there has been a growing body of opinion favouring certain alternative therapies for both the prevention and management of mental health problems; amongst these are art therapy, drama therapy, bibliotherapy and a group collectively known as ‘eco-therapies’ which utilises exposure to nature and the ‘green’ environment either with or without an exercise component.
There is good evidence about the importance of regular physical activity in both the prevention and management of some mental health problems including mild or moderate depression. It is also an important contributor to maintaining and improving memory and mental awareness and function as we get older.
Children & Young People
A survey published in 2004 showed that 10 per cent of children aged 5 to 15 had a mental health problem. Mental health problems are more common in boys than girls.
Children with mental health problems, especially emotional and conduct disorders, were also very likely to smoke, drink alcohol and use cannabis.
Children and young people may have to deal with a range of factors which put their mental health at risk, e.g. bereavement, divorce and separation, mental illness in the family, poor attachment. Some are able to cope because of the protective factors in their environment e.g. a loving parent, a special teacher, a strong community. Others do not have these protective factors and may succumb to mental health problems.
Much is understood about risk and protective factors but less is understood about resilience. Some young people whose lives are beset by established risk factors appear to be able to manage their lives very successfully even when there are few protective factors to help them. The more we can understand and build resilience in babies, children and young people, the better they will be able to deal with adverse life experiences. [Young Minds: For Children's Mental Health]