In honor of Disability Employment Awareness Month, the Office of Special Services (OSS) is working to raise awareness of disabilities by offering daily facts and tips about people with disabilities and living with disability. Please take a minute to read and broaden your understanding.
October 10, 2015 is World Mental Health Day!
World Mental Health Day is a yearly event celebrated on 10 October around the world. The day was created by the World Health Organization (WHO) to raise public awareness of mental health issues.
It’s thought that around 154 million people around the world suffer from depression, so it’s likely that you or someone you know will be affected by mental illness during your lifetime. World Mental Health Day aims to get us all talking openly about mental illnesses and the treatment and preventions that are available to us all.
The day will be organized with the help of the World Federation for Mental Health which was founded in 1948 to prevent emotional and mental health disorders and help those who do suffer from them.
This year the theme is “Mental health and older adults” and you can show your support by making a donation at the World Federation for Mental Health website, or by joining in with one of the events organized for the day. Events include community workshops with talks from professionals to give you any advice you might need.
Visit the World Mental Health Day official website for more details and don’t be afraid to talk about your problems this World Mental Health Day.
Living with a Mental Health Condition
Living with a Mental Health Condition If you have a mental health condition, you’re not alone. 1 in 5 American adults experience some form of mental illness in any given year. And across the population, 1 in every 20 adults is living with a serious mental health condition such as schizophrenia, bipolar disorder or long-term recurring major depression.
As with other serious illnesses, mental illness is not your fault or that of the people around you, but widespread misunderstandings about mental illness remain. Many people don’t seek treatment, or remain unaware that their symptoms could be connected to a mental health condition. People may expect a person with serious mental illness to look visibly different from others, and they may tell someone who doesn’t “look ill” to “get over it” through willpower. These misperceptions add to the challenges of living with a mental health condition. Every year people overcome the challenges of mental illness to do the things they enjoy. Through developing and following a treatment plan, you can dramatically reduce many of your symptoms.
People with mental health conditions can and do pursue higher education, succeed in their careers, make friends and have relationships. Mental illness can slow us down but we don’t need to let it stop us. For more information on living with mental illness, click here.
