Common Signs of Mental Illness

You know when things do not feel right, but is it mental illness? Something seems off, but maybe you cannot put your finger on it. Are your emotions all over the place? Have you been having angry outbursts? Are your actions aggressive?

There used to be a stigma behind mental disorders. But as more people seek therapy, talking about the signs of mental illness is more common. Knowing what to look for in yourself and others can help you seek treatment options earlier.

Common Signs of Mental Illness

You will notice that many common signs of mental illness are the same in several classes of mental disorders. Therefore, it takes time for a licensed professional to assess and diagnose a condition. Therapists use the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 5th Edition, by the American Psychiatric Association to diagnose a condition and take into consideration how long and how often your symptoms persist.

Below is a list of common mental disorders and their symptoms.

Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)

Doctors typically diagnose ADHD during childhood. Although some adults are diagnosed later in life, mainly it is because their parents never spoke to a doctor about their symptoms or believed it was just the child “being a kid.”

Symptoms of ADHD can include hyperactivity, but it is not mandatory for a diagnosis. Most children have a problem with fidgeting as they try to focus on something. The lack of focus and inability to concentrate are symptoms that mark ADHD.

Children with ADHD are also impulsive and can engage in risky behaviors. For example, they tend to be impatient and have trouble waiting their turn. This behavior can lead to problems with their peers, as well as anxiety and depression.

Bipolar Disorder

Bipolar disorder appears as an extreme state of emotions and behaviors. On one end of the spectrum, the person with bipolar disorder will go through a depressive state. In depression, they may sleep more, eat too much or too little, gain weight rapidly, and have fatigue. Getting out of bed in the morning is challenging. They tend to isolate themselves and lose interest in their favorite hobbies.

However, during a manic episode, the person has mood swings and experiences a state of euphoria. These highs can lead to insomnia, hurried speech, and quick movements. They may forget to eat and lose weight. Manic episodes can lead to risky behaviors and a heightened sex drive. Both the manic and depressive states can last weeks or months.

Anxiety Disorders

Anxiety disorders are born from fear and worry. These concerns interfere with the person’s daily activities, job, and relationships. Anxiety symptoms include rapid heart rate, excessive sweating, shortness of breath, chest tightness, panicky feelings, feelings of impending doom, feelings of hopelessness, and irritability.

In addition, the anxious person may be overcome with worry about their family, home, job, finances, or other things that prevent them from taking chances or being able to relax.

Anxiety and stress typically go hand in hand, although researchers are unclear if underlying fear brings about stress or if stress makes a person anxious. Therefore, it is a good idea to try to lower your stress levels to reduce anxiety and prevent panic attacks. Anxiety disorders include OCD and PTSD, two different mental disorders with severe anxiety as the link.

Dementia

Dementia is not really a mental illness; however, it interferes with brain function and lowers a person’s quality of life. The condition affects memory but creates a cascade of physical, cognitive, emotional, and behavioral problems. For example, a person with dementia can become depressed, paranoid, or have hallucinations as his or her cognitive function declines.

A person with dementia can become more confused, especially in the evenings. Confusion can cause him or her to wander off and get lost. Speech problems and mood swings are common symptoms of dementia.

Depression

Depression affects millions of people each year in the U.S. Depression is a sadness that will not seem to lift. People with depression may feel fatigued, sleep too much or have trouble falling asleep, eat too much or too little, have rapid weight changes, and isolate themselves.

You might forget things or have trouble concentrating, especially on work projects or school assignments. You may lose interest in activities you enjoy, which can cause problems in your relationships. Depression feels like a heavy cloud has taken residence on your chest and refuses to go away.

Depression brings irritability, anger, and mood swings. In addition, you may have unwanted thoughts that can lead to self-harm or suicide. If you suspect you have depression or suicidal thoughts, reach out to someone today.

Eating Disorders

Eating disorders are considered mental health conditions because each one boils down to obsessive thoughts about weight and appearance, leading to compulsive action. For people with anorexia nervosa, this can mean fearing the weight gain severely enough to starve themselves.

People with bulimia purge food after consumption before the body has a chance to digest it. Typically, this is through vomiting, laxatives, enemas, or overexercising. Anorexia and bulimia are deadly if left untreated.

Binge eating is another eating disorder, but it does not have starving or purging behaviors, although some people may hold off eating all day and binge in the evening. A binge is an uncontrollable behavior where the person eats thousands of calories worth of food over a short time, usually two hours.

People with binge disorder may be unaware of what they are eating and cannot sense when their stomach is full until after the binge. As a result, binge eaters eat past their comfort zone until it is painful. This behavior leads to obesity, heart disease, high cholesterol levels, Type II diabetes, and more.

Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD)

Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder is a mental illness with obsessive and intrusive thoughts that spur compulsive behaviors. For example, someone with OCD may worry about the safety of their loved ones and themselves, so he or she checks and rechecks all the locks on the windows and doors each night. He or she may get out of bed in the night to recheck.

OCD has several categories of behavioral patterns, including cleaning and contamination (germaphobia), checking, ordering and symmetry, intrusive thoughts about harming others, and hoarding. The behaviors interfere with the person’s life and can take time out of his or her day. He or she will continue in the pattern until he or she learns to break the cycle between thoughts, emotions, and compulsive behaviors.

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder is an anxiety disorder that can develop after experiencing trauma. The trauma can be from various sources, such as being under fire during a war, living through a natural disaster or tragic accident, or surviving a mass shooting. The condition can also emerge from long-term stress, such as domestic abuse.

PTSD symptoms can come on quickly in a person confronted with a trigger. He or she may physically back away from the source, experience nightmares, and have panic attacks. Some people with PTSD lash out at others or turn down a destructive path. Anxiety and depression are common with PTSD.

Schizophrenia

Schizophrenia is one of the most widely recognized psychotic disorders. The signs of mental illness for this condition involve breaking from reality. With schizophrenia, the person can no longer distinguish between reality and imagination. As a result, his or her thoughts and speech become distorted. In addition, he or she may experience hallucinations and delusions.

People with schizophrenia may behave compulsively, have mood swings, and suffer from anxiety or anger. They believe things that are not true in our reality, which terrifies them and their loved ones, as they may harm themselves. Psychotic disorders require treatment from a licensed mental health care practitioner.

Do the symptoms of mental illness concern you?

Do any of these signs of mental illness sound too familiar? Are you experiencing some of these, or is it a family member? Now is the time to reach out for help. Call our office today to schedule an appointment with a licensed therapist. Only a trained medical professional can diagnose a mental disorder.

A Christian counselor can help you get started on treatment. Contact us today to learn more about the treatment plans that will be best for you.