East Sussex County Council, Sussex Partnership NHS Trust and the Primary Care Trusts are trying to change this. Councillor Bill Bentley, Lead Member for Adult Social Care explains why:
“People that are unwell deserve to be cared for, and supported – whatever the type of illness. If you’ve got a bad back, you would expect sympathy and support from those around you. Yet the sad fact is that if you’ve got a mental health problem, you’re more likely to face stigma and prejudice than receive encouragement and well wishes.
Quite frankly, this isn’t acceptable. We’ve got to get the message out there that a mental health problem is not something to be feared – but an illness like any other and it can be treated or managed. In the majority of cases, people who are affected by a mental health problem recover and are able to lead normal lives. One in four of us will experience some sort of mental health problem during our lifetime, so it’s time we all adopted a more sensitive and positive attitude to mental health so that no one has to suffer in silence.”
Local Peacehaven doctor, Dr Ron White, says,
“Having a mental health problem is a very common experience. In some respects, it could be considered normal – just part of growing and developing into the people we are, as we encounter and overcome difficult problems and events.
I would estimate 30% of all my consultations are with patients who have mental or emotional health problems.”
Basic facts about mental illness:
- People with a mental illness can experience problems in the way they think, feel or behave. This can significantly affect their relationships, their work, and their quality of life.
- Mental illnesses are still not well understood, and medical debate continues over the causes – just as it does over the best ways to help people recover.
- Nevertheless, having a mental illness is not someone's fault. It is not a sign of weakness, and it is not something to be ashamed of.
- About one in every four people in Britain will need support with their mental health at some point in their life.
- Unlike the image often portrayed in the media, with appropriate treatment and support, most people recover from mental illness and lead productive and fulfilling lives.
The most common sorts of mental illness include anxiety, depression, phobias and obsessive compulsive disorders. For example, the chance of having an episode of clinical depression during your lifetime is 45% for women and 27% for men. In contrast, only about 3% of the population develop serious mental health problems – such as severe depression, bi-polar disorder (manic depression) or schizophrenia.
East Sussex County Council, the Primary Care Trusts, and Sussex Partnership NHS Trust are all working to raise public awareness and stop the stigma associated with mental illness.
Lisa Rodrigues, Chief Executive of Sussex Partnership NHS Trust explained why:
“We need to change attitudes! If you have a mental illness, the acceptance and support of your friends, family and work colleagues can be critical in helping you recover. That’s why this campaign to raise awareness is so important. No one should feel excluded or isolated just because they are ill.”
Nick Yeo, Chief Executive of the Primary Care Trusts, adds,
“One in four of us will need help with our mental health at some point in our lives. That’s a staggering statistic. It means a loved one, a close friend… or even you! No one should have to suffer in silence. We need to be able to talk about mental health openly, without fear of prejudice. As a society, we have a long way to go.”
So, what causes a mental health problem?
Stress is the primary cause in most common diagnoses. Anxiety, depression, fatigue, insomnia and obsessions and compulsions are all symptoms caused by stress, which in turn is closely linked to a person’s emotional and social environment. An ongoing situation at home or in the workplace could trigger poor mental health, as could a major event such as a divorce or bereavement.
For more serious and enduring mental illnesses, such as schizophrenia and bi-polar disorders (manic depression), the fairly constant rates at which they’ve occurred in populations in different parts of society and the country suggest that that causes are, at least in part, physiological, and that sufferers may have a hereditary predisposition.
Dementia, one of the primary types of mental illness in older people, has many different causes, linked to the brain’s chemistry, structure, and oxygen supply.
Can we protect our mental health?
We can all take action to guard against some of the most common mental health problems linked to stress. UK charity, the Mental Health Foundation, suggests the following ten steps:
- talk about your feelings
- keep active
- eat well
- drink sensibly
- keep in touch with friends and loved ones
- ask for help
- take a break
- do things you are good at
- accept who you are
- care for others.
For more details see the Mental Health Foundation's guide:
How to look after your mental health.
Notes to editors
- East Sussex County Council, Sussex Partnership NHS Trust and the Primary Care Trusts work jointly to provide mental health services for the people of East Sussex.
- Sussex Partnership NHS Trust is the main provider of mental health, substance misuse and learning disability services in East and West Sussex, and Brighton & Hove. It is applying for foundation trust status. For more information on the trust and its services please see the Sussex Partnership NHS Trust website.
- If you are concerned about your own or someone else’s mental health, in the first instance speak to your GP.
- In East Sussex an estimated 52,000 people will be suffering from a common mental health problem at any one time, eg anxiety, depression.
- The number of people with dementia in East Sussex was approximately 10,000 in 2006. This is expected to increase to 17,000 by 2028.
- Other mental health problems are rarer.
- Estimates for the prevalence of bi-polar affective disorder (manic depression) are varied with a range of estimates emerging from different studies in different countries. The figure for East Sussex lies somewhere between 6,500 and 7,500.
- On average 650 women per year will experience post-natal depression, although prevalence is likely to be higher as the condition can persist for longer than a year.
- There are likely to be around 40 new cases of schizophrenia a year in the local adult population.
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