It has always been a question in my mind why a "mental illness" is not described as its real name – depression, bipolar, anxiety, etc., just as diabetes or cancer is. Whenever a violent incident occurs, we see headlines like, "The suspect has a mental illness." These headlines, in my opinion, throw a bad light on mental illness in general and cast an aura of fear and rejection. Individuals having a mental illness often internalize these statements as being unworthy. The fear of being rejected often is a deterrent to seeking treatment.
A mental illness is a condition that affects a person's thinking, feeling, behavior or mood. These conditions deeply impact day-to-day living and may also affect the ability to relate to others. But, not all of these illnesses are the same and each person may react differently just as not all physical illnesses are the same.
Some researchers claim that diseases such as schizophrenia, bipolar and autism clearly fit the mold as biological diseases, while disorders such as depression and anxiety are less clearly defined.
How else can mental illness be described? Though researchers say that research of the brain is more than 100 years behind that of heart disease and diabetes, thanks to new tools in genetics and neuroimaging, scientists are making progress toward deciphering details of the underlying biology of mental disorders. Are mental illnesses simply physical diseases that happen to strike the brain? Or do these disorders belong to a class all their own?
Is mental illness a mental or biological disorder? Eric Kandel, MD, a Nobel Prize laureate and professor of brain science at Columbia University, believes it's all about biology. "All mental processes are brain processes, and therefore all disorders of mental functioning are biological diseases," he says. "The brain is the organ of the mind. Where else could [mental illness] be if not in the brain?"
Why is it so hard to accept that the brain is an important organ in our body? Just as any other organ in our body can become nonfunctional or diseased without shame, the brain is no different and deserves the same social courtesy.
Attitudes need to be changed. As an affiliate of the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI), our mission and purpose is to make life better for families and individuals who live with a mental illness through education, support, and advocacy. We advocate for a better understanding that these conditions are no one's fault. We urge people to reach out and seek help and be the "change" you want to be.
Submitted by: Dodie Melvin, Executive Director
NAMI Knox Licking County Ohio
740-397-3088
namiklcohio@embarqmail.com
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