This document provides an overview of mental illness, including definitions, prevalence rates, common types of mental illnesses, and how mental illness has been viewed from a symbolic interactionist perspective. Some key points include: mental illness affects 20% of adults annually, with mood disorders and anxiety being most common; stigma has been a major barrier to treatment as mental illness was long seen as disgraceful; and the symbolic interactionist perspective outlines how mental illness progressed from being an unrecognized social problem to one that is increasingly recognized and addressed through awareness campaigns.

1. Mental Illness
ProblemsofWell-Being
By: Cassandra Cavasin

2. What Is Mental
Illness?
 Mental illness is a broad term that is used to refer to all mental
health disorders as a whole (Holmes, Knox, Mooney, & Schacht,
2013)
 Just as physical illness can take on many different forms, mental
health can as well
 In order to understand mental illness we need to understand
mental health
 Mental health refers to how we cope with the normal stresses of
everyday life through how we interact with others, think, act, and
feel
 Mental illness affects a person’s mood, thinking, or feeling, and
can impair their ability to function (Canadian Mental Health
Association, 2015)

3. Mental Health
at aGlance
 Each year 20% of all adults will experience a mental health
condition; that is equivalent to every 1 in 5 people (National
Alliance of Mental Illness, 2015)
 50% of mental health conditions develop by the age of 14, and
75% develop by the age of 24
 Women have higher rates of anxiety and mood disorders while
men report higher rates of addiction
 In Canada alone it is estimated that the cost of mental health to
the government is approximately $51 billion per year
 Even though mental illness affects so many people and is
becoming more prevalent there is still a great amount of stigma
attached to it

4. Putting a Face
on Mental
Illness

5. Mood
Disorders
 Mood disorders are the second most prevalent mental illness in
Canada, affecting about 10% of the population (CMHA, 2015)
 The most common mood disorders are depression and bipolar
disorder
 Depression affects a person’s mood and manifests itself in feelings
of sadness, guilt, low self-worth, and even emptiness.Those
affected by it tend to isolate themselves and lose interest in things
that they normally enjoy
 Those affected by bipolar disorder go through episodes of mania
and depression.These mood swings can be intense and vary in
length
 Mood disorders can affect anyone, but women are more likely
than men to develop them (Centre for Addiction and Mental
Health, 2012)
 Mood disorders can be treated with medication and counselling

6. Anxiety
Disorders
 Anxiety is a natural response to a dangerous situation
 Those who have an anxiety disorder respond to these situations
more intensely, more frequently, and the feelings may last longer
or linger
 Anxiety is the most common mental illness in Canada, and affects
about 12% of the population
 Types of anxiety disorders include generalized anxiety disorder,
social phobias, panic disorder, post traumatic stress disorder, and
obsessive compulsive disorder
 Common symptoms of anxiety disorders are uncontrollable and
excessive anxiety, thoughts, or fears and avoidance of certain
places and situations that provoke these feelings
 All forms of anxiety disorder are treatable either with the use of
medication, therapy, or a combination of both

7. Schizophrenia
 Schizophrenia is classified as a psychotic disorder. “Psychosis”
describes conditions where a person loses some contact with
reality.
 Schizophrenia is a very complex mental illness but is characterized
by disruptions in thinking.These disruptions cause the person’s
language, perception, and sense of self to be altered.
(Schizophrenia Society of Ontario, 2013)
 Researchers know very little about what causes schizophrenia
 Approximately 1 in 100 people in Canada have schizophrenia
 This disorder most commonly begins in either late adolescence or
early adulthood
 Most cases of schizophrenia can be treated through medication,
hospitalization, therapy, and social supports (SSO, 2013)

8. Eating
Disorders
 Eating disorders are not just about food but about a way to regain
a feeling of control or a coping method (CMHA, 2015)
 There are three main types of eating disorders: anorexia nervosa,
bulimia, and binge-eating disorder
 A person with anorexia nervosa refuses to maintain a normal body
weight by exercising excessively or restricting what they eat.They
could be severely underweight but still see themselves as
overweight when they look in the mirror. 10% who experience this
mental illness die as a result of suicide or health problems (CMHA,
2015)
 Bulimia is when a person binge-eats and then follows this by
purging food through either the use of laxatives or vomiting.
 Binge-eating involves periods of over-eating followed by feelings
of guilt and depression.
 Because eating disorders can cause severe health problems it is
important to seek treatment as soon as possible

9. Mental Illness
andYouth
 Youth between the ages of 15 and 24 are most likely to experience
mental illness than any other age group (CAMH, 2012)
 10-20% of Canadian youth are affected by mental illness (CMHA,
2015)
 Suicide is the second leading cause of death among youth and
young adults in Canada. In fact the youth suicide rate in Canada is
the third highest in the industrialized world (CMHA, 2015)
 70% of mental health problems will have their onset during either
childhood or youth (CAMH, 2012)
 Aboriginal youth die by suicide 5 or 6 more times than non-
Aboriginal youth (CAMH, 2012)
 In Canada, only 1 out of 5 children who need mental health
services receive them (CMHA, 2015)
 Once depression is recognized, treatment and help can make a
difference for 80% of those who are affected (CMHA, 2015)

10. Mental Illness
in the
Workplace
 Mental illness is the leading cause of disability in Canada (CMHA,
2015)
 39% of Ontario workers would not tell a manager if they were
suffering from a mental illness (CAMH, 2012)
 64% of Ontario workers said that they would be concerned how
work would be affected if a colleague had a mental illness (CAMH,
2012)
 At least 500 000 employed Canadians are not able to work due to
mental illness in any given week (CAMH, 2012)
 Mental illness costs employers billions of dollars in sick days and
absenteeism, and results in a loss of productivity (CMHA, 2015)

11. TheStigma of
Mental Illness
 Even though mental health awareness is increasing and so many
people are effected by it, there is still a stigma attached to it
 42% of Canadians are unsure whether they would continue to
socialize with a friend if they had a mental illness (CAMH, 2012)
 Many of those who suffer from a mental illness are reluctant to
talk about it or get help for fear of being labelled.This fear directly
relates to the labelling theory of the symbolic interactionist
perspective
 For so long mental health was labelled as disgraceful, strange, or
would let to rejection. People who suffer from mental health are
afraid of being assigned the status of “schizophrenic” or
“depressed” because they are afraid that is all society will ever see
them as
 The stigma attached to mental illness is a serious barrier to both
treatment, diagnosis, and acceptance

12. Stigma-We’ve
Got it Mapped!

13. Bell Let’sTalk
Campaign

14. Mental Illness:
Symbolic
Interactionist
Perspective
 Holmes, Knox, Mooney, and Schacht (2013) state that based on
the symbolic interactionist theory a “condition must be defined or
recognized as a social problem in order for it to be a social
problem”.
 Social problems develop in three stages.The problem must first
be recognized by society. It then goes on to be recognized by the
larger community through media, schools, etc. Lastly, a
mobilization for action is created and official plan is developed to
deal with the problem. (Holmes et al., 2013)
 Centuries ago, no cure or treatment for mental health existed.
Unlike physical maladies it was invisible and therefore it was not
widely understood.
 Those with mental illnesses were left untreated and were labelled
as “lunatics” or it was said that they had “gone mad” (Moran,
2009)

15. Mental Illness:
Symbolic
Interactionist
Perspective
 Many of these individuals were shunned and committed to
asylums.Thus, the social problem of mental illness, or at the time
“madness” was first recognized by society
 As decades went by mental illness began to be understood better
and it gained more and more attention. Only recently however has
it been recognized by the media, schools, and other institutions
 Now that mental illness was recognized by the larger community
many groups wanted to promote awareness and start campaigns
to combat it
 Although it took several years, the social problem of mental illness
was created and passed through all three stages as defined by the
symbolic interactionist perspective
 The challenge now is to reduce the stigma attached to mental
illness and to change the meanings and labels that society
attaches to it

16. Mental Illness:
IsThere a
Solution?
 The solution is to continue to spread awareness and to change the
way mental illness is perceived by society
 Symbolic interactionist theory can also provide a way to create a
solution to this social problem
 Changing the definitions of what it means to have a mental illness
will encourage those who suffer from one to finally begin to speak
up and to reach out for help
 If the stigma of having a mental illness disappears then there is no
need for sufferers to fear being labelled as a “disgrace” or to fear
rejection

17. References
Bell Canada. [BellCanada]. (2014, December 22). Bell Let’sTalk 2015- Howie Mandel
Testimonial [Video File]. Retrieved from
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cnVZCnotBi4
Canadian Mental Health Association. (2015). Understanding Mental Illness. Retrieved
from http://www.cmha.ca/mental-health/understanding-mental-illness/
Centre for Addiction and Mental Health. (2012). Mental Illness and Addictions: Facts
and Statistics. Retrieved from
http://www.camh.ca/en/hospital/about_camh/newsroom/for_reporters/Pages/addicti
onmentalhealthstatistics.aspx
Holmes, M., Knox, D., Mooney, L.A., & Schacht, C. (2013). Understanding Social
Problems. Toronto; Nelson Education LTD.
Moran, J.E. (2009). History of Madness and Mental Illness: A Short History of Care
andTreatment in Canada
National Alliance of Mental Illness. (2015). Mental Health Conditions. Retrieved from
https://www.nami.org/Learn-More/Mental-Health-Conditions
Neinstein & Associates. [neinsteinassociates]. (2012, December 14). Mental Illness:
WhatYou See/WhatYou Don’t See [Video File]. Retrieved from
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=54sDdNa9vek
Schizophrenia Society of Ontario. (2013). About Schizophrenia. Retrieved from
http://www.schizophrenia.on.ca/Resources/About-Schizophrenia