Mental Illness- WHEN TO SEEK HELP?

 WHEN TO SEEK HELP

Advanced mental illness can be obvious enough, manifested in traits and actions so far from normal that there is no room for mistake. But the more subtle manifestations of mental illness in early stages, when treatment may be most effective, frequently are missed.

Symptoms alone can be misleading since there are circumstances when temporary mental or emotional distress is normal. Only a qualified expert is capable of properly diagnosing mental disorder. Yet there are some guidelines which often can be helpful in determining when diagnosis, and proper treatment, should be sought:

1. Is a person's behavior appropriate? When, for example, a man cries upon hearing very bad news, the crying is not unnatural. But crying in response to a commonplace everyday frustration, or any exaggerated or inappropriate reactions to daily happenings, may signal that trouble is brewing.

2. Has there been any major change in traits or behavior? A man who has been a jovial extrovert grows increasingly withdrawn and silent; a once-fastidious housewife becomes slovenly; a person who has tended to be somewhat miserly becomes a heavy spender-any striking change in long-established personality patterns and habits can be a warning.

3. Can the individual give good reasons for his behavior? Ask any healthy person why he does something and chances are great you will get a logical explanation. When, however, anyone has difficulty explaining his acts and feelings rationally, he may not be reacting to the real world but to imaginary circumstances and may be, on the verge of mental illness.

4. Can he control his actions? As we have seen earlier, all of us quite normally experience dangerous urges fleetingly: we know better than to give in to them; we control our "crazy" ideas without difficulty. But people with some mental illnesses lose this ability, may see no need for control, may consider they are capable of doing things impossible for others. In any case, when an individual loses control, it may be more obvious to others than to him.

5. Has 'there been a loss of emotional vigor? All of us have to face periods of crisis, times when because of grief over a personal loss (loved one, job opportunity, possession, etc.) we feel low. But if we are basically healthy, we regain our good spirits, shake off our depression. We have the emotional vigor and resilience to do so. Thus, a temporary state of depression in itself is no cause for suspicion, but when the depression lingers beyond a reasonable time, it may be well to seek help.

1.       Is the behavior harmful, destructive? Any time an individual-child or adult, and if a child no matter how young-exhibits a continuous tendency to do damage to people, pets, property, or himself or herself, an emotional disturbance, possibly a serious one, is likely to be at work, and expert advice is needed. While the sickest people are the most likely to get at least some kind of treatment, among people with less severe forms of psychological ill- ness it is estimated that as few as 10 percent are getting help. Whether all need help is a question, since some appear to cope with their problems reasonably well, but it is generally felt that even those who do not urgently need help could often benefit from it.

2.       THE SPECIALISTS Perhaps in no other field of health has there been so much quackery as in mental health. Self-labeled experts flourish. If at any time you need help for a mental illness or for what you have reason to believe may be an early developing emotional problem, you can best protect yourself against outright deception and incompetence by asking your physician's advice. He can usually decide the kind of specialist who could be most helpful and provide you with the names of several he knows to be competent.