Mental illness is often overlooked, and ignored, but millions of people deal with its effects. Over half the adults in the US will need to come to grips with some form of mental illness during their lifetime, but often social stigmas may make it harder to even admit you’re dealing with one. The result of not getting help can lead to mental illnesses getting worse and feeling even more depressed, isolated, and anxious. Knowing what mental illness is, how it affects you, and why it can be hard to accept all play a role in getting you the help you’ll need.

If you’re having a hard time dealing with or admitting to mental illness in the Panama City, Florida area, Dr. Roman Nation and Nation’s Best Family Health Care are here to offer compassionate and comprehensive care to help you get better.

Understanding mental health and mental illness

How you feel about yourself and the people around you, your ability to reason, how you feel about how society sees you… these are all important facets of your mental health. Your mental health should be a priority throughout your life. Anything that negatively impacts your emotional, psychological, and social well being should be addressed since a decline in your mental health can bear on you physically.

Any condition that primarily affects thinking, mood, and behavior can be considered a type of mental illness. There are many types of illnesses, and they can happen every once in a while, or they can affect you daily. You may also have multiple mental illnesses. Ignoring them will often only make them worse, which can make it even harder to cope.

Common types of mental illness

Here are some common types of mental illness we can help you manage:

Bipolar disorder

Formerly known as manic depression, this condition creates episodes of extreme mood swings in the form of hypomania (emotional highs) or depression. This means that you can swing from the irritability, euphoria, and energetic highs quickly to hopelessness, misery, and lack of interest in anything.

Clinical depression

This mood disorder is one of the most common and can be experienced briefly or over long periods of time. It can cause a variety of symptoms like loss of interest, hopelessness, drug abuse, inability to concentrate, insomnia, excessive sleeping, or fatigue.

Generalized anxiety disorder (GAD)

Also called chronic anxiety neurosis, this is an illness in which you worry uncontrollably about common situations and events. Getting repeatedly anxious with this condition may cause symptoms like difficulty concentrating or sleeping, irritability, exhaustion, shaking, and rapid heartbeat.

Post traumatic stress disorder

This illness is often brought on by a traumatic event that leaves a lasting mental impact on you in many forms. You may experience flashbacks, nightmares, severe anxiety, or severe emotional distress from the event.

Overcoming the stigma

If you are dealing with one or more of these conditions or others, societal stigma can make it hard for you to look for help. Many misinformed stereotypes regarding mental illness are inaccurate, offensive, and damaging, and they can make you feel like you’re less of a person for admitting you have a problem. This is how depressed people get labeled as lazy, and people dealing with PTSD, bipolar disorder, and other conditions can be dismissed as crazy. But dealing with a mental illness should be nothing for which you should feel ashamed. It’s just another type of medical condition that needs treatment to improve.

Mental illness is a medical illness, and you should get treatment to feel better about yourself and improve your life. If you’re ready to make that first step, make an appointment with Dr. Nation and Nation’s Best Family Health Care today.