Almost half of all Australians will experience a mental illness during their lives, potentially affecting their relationships, study, work and even physical health.
In this series we will focus on depression and anxiety.
Depression is common and differs from sadness in that someone who's depressed feels an intense sadness, usually for no reason and which goes on for a long time. They also find it hard to motivate themselves, make contact with friends, function at work and enjoy the things they used to.
Depression affects men and women differently, making it more difficult to identify and diagnose effectively in males. It's estimated one in six men will suffer from depression in their lifetime – and far fewer are treated.Check out our episode on male depression here
Anxiety can be a normal response when we're afraid or heading into a stressful situation like an exam or job interview. It becomes a disorder when it lasts a long time and occurs for no good reason. While there are different types of anxiety disorders, from fear of things like spiders and flying to post traumatic stress disorder, the thing they often have in common is the avoidance of situations which make the sufferer anxious or which they think might make them anxious. This avoidance can often be what disrupts their lives. There are various treatments avaliable and some have good evidence to support them, including some non-drug treatments like cognitive behavioural therapy. To watch the first episode in our three part series on anxiety, click here
Mental Health First Aid is the help provided to a person developing a mental health problem, or in a mental health crisis, until appropriate professional treatment is received or until the crisis resolves. These crises can take many forms including an anxiety attack, acute stress reaction, overdose, distressed psychotic state, or feeling suicidal.
Suicide is a serious and devastating issue with approximately 10% of the population having had suicidal thoughts at some time in their lives. Most of us know what to do if we injure ourselves or have chest pain, but very few of us know what to do if the problem is psychological. The first step in mental first aid is to recognize when someone is suffering.
Knowing someone is at risk of suicide can be daunting, but knowing what to do can be more life saving than CPR. Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) has a general set of recommendations about what signs to look out for and how you can help someone who may be at risk of suicide.
Check out our episode on Mental Health First Aid here