COLUMN: Let’s Talk Mental Health – It’s not all in your head

Let’s talk again about mental illness. We know the human brain is susceptible to illness, just like any other organ. Chemicals in the brain function as regulators of thoughts, feelings, and actions. Brain function can be significantly disrupted if these chemicals are out of balance, contributing to mental illness.

Mental illness shows signs noticeable by family or friends or by the persons themselves. These signs and symptoms allow health professionals to diagnose the illness using a diagnostic process similar to that of physical illness or injury. For example, after a fall, a person may have bruises, swelling, and a visible limp (signs) and feel stiffness or pain (symptoms). A doctor might examine the patient and order tests. Then the doctor might diagnose a broken ankle and proceed with appropriate treatments.

In the case of mental illness, signs and symptoms may include changes in the person’s thoughts, moods, or behaviours causing distress or pain and serious dysfunction. As with physical illness, signs and symptoms of mental illness can vary from light to severe, depending on the illness, the person, and biosocial background. And like physical illnesses, mental disorders can take various forms, including mood-altering illnesses, anxiety and personality disorders, schizophrenia, food disorders, and addictions.

A good analogy is the physical illness of Type 1 Diabetes. In both illnesses an organ in a person’s body isn’t producing the chemicals needed to live a healthy, well-balanced life. The diabetic won’t be able to process food to gain vital nourishment, because an organ in the body (the pancreas) is not producing the chemical (insulin) needed. The patient manages the illness by regulating diet and exercise and, most importantly, taking enough insulin after eating to process sugars from the food and turn them into energy for life. For those of us who don’t have diabetes, this happens in our bodies whenever we eat; we’re not aware of it and don’t need to choose to make it happen.

For people with mental illness, an organ (the brain) is not producing enough of the chemicals (neurotransmitters such as serotonin, dopamine, and others) needed to think healthy, choose suitable and adaptive behaviours, and regulate moods and emotions. The patient needs to manage the illness with appropriate medications (antidepressants and anti-anxiety medications often replace or supply more of the chemicals the brain isn’t producing enough of), healthy diet and exercise regimes, and appropriate social supports. For those of us who don’t have mental illness, healthy brain function and positive thinking happens much more easily and we have to regulate it consciously only when under increased stress. We won’t have to work as hard at it as the person with mental illness because our brains happen to produce enough of the required chemicals.

It’s obvious, therefore, that mental illness is a real bodily illness, not just something that’s “all in your head.” If we’ve ever experienced an episode of mental illness, we know how unhelpful it is when a well-meaning person urges us to “snap out of it,” tells us to “count your blessings,” or urges us to trust God more. The truth is that a person with a mental illness would gladly do these things, if they only could. When an illness affects your brain function, how are you to summon the will or motivation (both functions of a healthy brain) to do these things?

People often ask

Q. Does everyone with mental illness need to seek professional help?

A. The ways that people might receive treatment vary. Remember what works for one person may not work for another. Some strategies or treatments are more successful when combined with others. The person with a chronic mental disorder may benefit from different treatments at different stages of the illness. Most experts say the well-informed patient is often the best judge of which treatment works best.

There are many options and choices people could consider to improve their mental health. Changes in lifestyle, such as healthy diet, reduced alcohol and illegal drug use, regular exercise, and sufficient sleep, combined with talk therapy, group therapy, or medication, can bring about great improvements to mental health.