How to spot it?
Almost 450 million people in the world are mentally ill. Psychologists and doctors predict this number to briskly increase in the coming future years due to several reasons. Many people suffer anxiety disorders, depression and genetic problems leading to some kind of mental illness at some stage. Hence, the identification of mental illness is very important. Identification will help in both treatment and prevention of psychological disorders.
Lack of early recognition of mental disorders in people with learning difficulties leads to negative consequences for the person affected, and for their family. Factors that influence this poor recognition include: a lack of knowledge about mental health. Some ways to identify mental health issues are for example, behaviour issues, loss of skills, requiring more prompting, or other indications of distress.
Symptoms
Healthy people differ significantly in their overall personality, mood, and behaviour. Each person also varies from day to day, depending on the circumstances. However, a sudden, major change in personality and/or behaviour, particularly one that is not related to an obvious event (such as taking a drug or losing a loved one), often indicates a problem. Fighting frequently, using weapons and expressing a desire to badly hurt others also are warning signs.
Children who have anxiety disorders experience anxiety as a persistent problem that interferes with their daily activities. worry or stress makes it hard for a child to function normally, an anxiety disorder should be considered. Some symptoms of anxiety disorders are feeling restless, difficulty in concentrating and having sleep problems. Excessive depression or being depressed for every small thing can also be a sign of mental illness.
Some people eat more when they are under stress or feeling bad, and others eat less. This effects weight gain or loss and is also a warning sign of a mental health disorder.
Demonstrating a heightened sensitivity to sights, sounds, smells or touch, such as avoiding over-stimulating situations or jumping dramatically at loud noises, may also indicate mental health conditions.
Social withdrawal is avoiding people and activities you would usually enjoy. People with severe mental illness are probably the most isolated social group of all. People who are socially isolated have something uncommon between them and others. This uncommon thing can be considered as a mental disorder.
This includes strong feeling of aggression on every single thing, suicidal thoughts, delusions, strange thoughts, substance use, physical ailments, etc.