Mental Health Week this week (ending on Sunday 13 October 2012), and Beyond Blue is asking all of us to talk about depression and anxiety. With a focus on ‘starting the conversation’, Mental Health Week aims to reduce the stigma associated with mental illness.
What is Mental Illness?
According to the Department of Health, one in five Australians will experience a mental illness at some point. A mental illness, or mental disorder, impacts a person’s thoughts, feelings and actions.
The most common mental illnesses are depression and anxiety. Eating disorders, schizophrenia, bipolar mood disorder and personality disorders are also classified as mental illnesses.
What is Depression?
Depression is a serious illness that brings about intense feelings of sadness and moodiness over a long period. It can affect how the person lives, works and goes about their daily activities.
A person with depression may experience or display moodiness, increased irritability, insomnia, recklessness, or a lost interest in food, exercise and other fun activities. They may also turn to drugs or alcohol or avoid work or school.
What is Anxiety?
While some people think anxiety is the same as stress, they are in fact quite different. Stress usually relates to a particular situation, such as when you have to deliver a speech or have work deadlines to meet. Anxiety, however, is more prolonged and can occur for no reason.
If a person has felt worried and their anxiety has made it hard to do everyday activities, for six months or more, they may have an anxiety disorder. If these feelings are coupled with irritability, restlessness, fatigue, a lack of concentration or trouble sleeping, Beyond Blue advises seeing a doctor for a diagnosis.
Treating Mental Illness
Often, a person with a mental illness doesn't know how or where to find help. That's why the theme of this year's Mental Health Week is 'start the conversation'.
So the first action to take in treating mental illness is to begin talking about it. Many people think depression and anxiety are just feelings of ‘being down’ or ‘worrying too much’. By talking openly about mental illness with those around us, we can remove misconceptions about depression and anxiety so people feel more empowered to seek help.
Following that, it’s important to seek advice and treatment from a health professional. This can include seeking assistance from a GP, hospital Lifeline (call 13 11 14) or a suicide helpline.
There are many natural therapies and psychological treatments that may help manage the symptoms of depression and anxiety. These include:
- Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT): this program helps people replace negative thoughts with positive ones, so they can cope rationally in challenging situations.
- Psychotherapy: like CBT, psychotherapy can help increase a person’s insight into their destructive behaviours. It may also help with psychosis, schizophrenia and other mental illnesses.
- Meditation: learning how to relax and still the mind may help reduce anxiety and improve feelings of self-worth.
- Fitness: keeping fit with regular exercise has been shown to boost mood, reduce anxiety and help minimise the symptoms of many mental illnesses.
- Acupuncture: by balancing the body, acupuncture has been shown to help alleviate stress and manage anxiety.
- Reflexology: this natural therapy stimulates acupressure points in the hands and feet to stimulate the body’s systems, bring about relaxation and eliminate toxins.
