One of the regrets many families of a mentally ill person have is that they didn’t see the signs that their loved one was struggling and get them help right away. At Carolina Dunes Behavioral Health in Leland, North Carolina, we want to help you recognize the signs that you or a loved one needs professional support so that recovery can begin right away.
Why People Miss Early Signs of Mental Illness
One in five American adults has a mental health issue, and many of them developed symptoms during childhood or adolescence but did not receive help until years later because their symptoms weren’t recognized as something requiring professional intervention. There are many reasons why friends and family don’t always realize that someone they love is struggling with a mental health disorder.
Some of these include:
- Stigma against people with mental illness. Thinking that their loved one cannot be like “those people” who they perceive as dangerous or immoral. Not realizing that genetics, prenatal exposure, brain chemistry, and trauma are the causes of mental illness, not moral failings or criminality.
- Not knowing the signs of mental health conditions or not seeing them. People with mental illnesses sometimes hide their symptoms from the people around them, or their loved ones just don’t know what to look for.
- Mistaking symptoms for “normal adolescent angst”. The symptoms of mental illness often present around the time that young people are starting puberty, so it may be expected that they will experience mood swings, aggression, or want to spend more time alone because of their age.
- Believing that a child can’t experience mental health concerns. Some people assume that mental health disorders only happen in adults, so they do not see the need for professional support for anyone under 18 who is struggling with mental illness. Because half of all mental illness begins by age 14, this means that a lot of people are being overlooked.
- Symptoms that don’t fit the textbook example of a mental health condition. For a long time, ADHD was primarily diagnosed in young boys because the symptoms experienced by women and girls are easier to ignore or miss. Women and girls with undiagnosed ADHD often develop depression and low self-esteem because they struggle with things that others seem to handle with ease, and they decide that they must be dumb, lazy, or otherwise defective.
Spotting the Signs
When you know what to look for, it’s easier to recognize that someone in your life is struggling:
- They are always exhausted
- They eat a lot more or a lot less than they used to
- They worry a lot
- They have a lot of nightmares
- They engage in substance use or increase how much they are using
- They struggle to do things they used to find easy at work, home, school, or other places
- They always seem to have headaches, digestive issues, or body aches
- Everything always has to be perfect, and they beat themselves up if it’s not
- They no longer express emotion, or they have big emotional outbursts
- They make choices that are illogical and/or out of character
- They have stopped taking care of their appearance
- They are avoiding friends, family, colleagues, tasks that seem overwhelming, or triggers that make their mental health symptoms worse
- They are showing signs that they could be thinking about suicide, such as wishing they were dead, saying others would be better off without them, being preoccupied with death or violence, saying they feel hopeless, trapped, or worthless, giving away cherished possessions, doing things to tie up loose ends, or gathering up items they could use to end their life
How to Get Help
It is important to remember that the signs of mental illness, physical health disorders, and drug use can overlap. You don’t have to diagnose which type of problem you’re seeing; you just need to recognize the need for help and connect your loved one to support.
Here are some places you can connect with a person who might be struggling with any of these issues:
- Family doctor. Their primary care professional can rule out medical causes of symptoms and refer them to a mental health provider, if appropriate.
- Insurance carrier. The company that oversees the person’s health insurance may be able to provide information about local mental health providers.
- Clergy. There are people who would rather talk to their spiritual leader before they seek out mental health support.
- Crisis line. 988 and other phone/text lines can connect a person who is struggling to a trained counselor, who will listen and help them to identify professional supports in their area.
- Emergency department. If your loved one is endorsing suicidal thoughts and you’re not sure you can keep them safe, then your best bet is to call 911 or take them to the nearest emergency room.
At Carolina Dunes, we offer inpatient, acute psychiatric care for adolescents, adults, and older adults who are struggling with a mental health condition requiring hospitalization. We help people with serious behavioral health disorders to regain their quality of life.
