THE IMPACT OF PSYCHOLOGICAL DISORDERS

Psalms 139:23 “ Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts:”

     On the official website for the New England Psychologist --- nePsy.com, the impact of mental illness as opposed to physical illness is discussed:

Approximately one-third of sick days are caused by psychological disorders, according to a survey sponsored by the National Institute of Mental Health.

The survey of more than 9,000 adults was based on the National Comorbidity Survey-Replication and measured sick days for chronic conditions. Adults with mental disorders - including depression and anxiety - miss 1.3 billion days of work, school or other activities every year, more than back and neck pain, which caused 1.2 billion days per year, according to the survey. Americans report 3.7 billion sick days a year because of chronic conditions such as cancer, vision loss and heart attacks.

The study was also unique because it took a comparative perspective of physical disorders and psychological disorders, he says. "It was a surprise to see how enormous (the number of sick days) was for mental health disorders." The fact that one out of every three days is because of a mental disorder is "extraordinary," he says … .

That number is particularly noteworthy if one analyzes another factor. "If I look at how much money is given on research to cancer or heart disease or diabetes, obviously the allocation of resources to tackle these problems are way out of kilter with the magnitude of these problems," Kessler says. "Mental health disorder is not getting the attention it deserves."

That is not only true for research, but also true for treatment. "When we look at some other work we've done on patterns of treatment for mental and physical disorders, we find that, in general, people are more likely to get treatment for a physical than a mental health problem for comparable severity," he says.

"There are two reasons," Kessler continues. "One is that people don't very often code emotional distress as an illness." He notes that one of the lowest rates of treatment is for social phobia or anxiety. "People say, 'I'm shy … it's not an illness.'" Public perception is a factor. "People say, you 'have' a heart attack, but you 'are' mentally ill," Kessler adds… .  Of the 1.3 billion sick days for mental health disorders, depression topped the list with 387 million. Social phobia accounted for 214 million; posttraumatic stress disorder, 113 million; generalized anxiety disorder, 110 million; and bipolar disorder and panic disorders were each just over 100 million. Other issues included substance abuse, agoraphobia and separation anxiety disorder.

Physical conditions that resulted in sick days included arthritis (375 million), stroke (221 million), heart attack (204 million) and cancer (71.5 million).

Public awareness of mental health conditions is rising, Kessler says, but still, there is a misallocation of attention and funds in medicine in general. "It's not just mental disorders. If you look at the amount of research money available for childhood cancer, it's staggering in relation to the number of kids who have cancer," he says. "The reason is, it's just a compelling thing."

Physical conditions that resulted in sick days included arthritis (375 million), stroke (221 million), heart attack (204 million) and cancer (71.5 million).

Public awareness of mental health conditions is rising, Kessler says, but still, there is a misallocation of attention and funds in medicine in general. "It's not just mental disorders. If you look at the amount of research money available for childhood cancer, it's staggering in relation to the number of kids who have cancer," he says. "The reason is, it's just a compelling thing…"

" I know there are an awful lot of people with mental disorders who are suffering and are not in treatment compared to people with less severe physical disorders who are getting treatment." The allocation needs to be changed, "to make society as a whole function better," he says.”  http://www.masspsy.com/leading/0801_ne_disorders.html Job talks about mental anguish in Job 15:24 --“Trouble and anguish shall make him afraid; they shall prevail against him, as a king ready to the battle.”  We need to lobby for better treatment for the mentally ill.  Do you know someone who is struggling with depression or mental illness?  Extend a hand of friendship to them.