It's OK not to be OK. Erasing stigma of mental illness is a big step toward healing.
We are a nation of people on the edge, but we also are a nation of people more willing to talk about our vulnerabilities.
This column is part of an ongoing series by Paste BN Opinion exploring the mental health crisis facing Americans.
It’s no surprise the pandemic has battered our collective well-being. But it might come as a surprise that the pandemic has provided an opportunity to restore our mental well-being.
We now are finally engaged in a meaningful conversation about mental health and substance use challenges, and this change has helped reduce the stigma surrounding treatment.
The tragic loss of life, social isolation, economic insecurity and the need to dodge new variants from a relentless virus all have taken a toll. More people report experiencing mental health challenges. More people are dying from overdose deaths, and overdoses from fentanyl are the leading cause of death among Americans ages 18 to 45.
More than a third of Americans ages 13-56 cited the pandemic as a major source of stress, and many said it has made their lives harder, according to a recent survey by MTV and The AP-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research.
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Roughly half of Americans across generations said the pandemic has led to struggles having fun and maintaining mental health. We are a nation of people on the edge, but we also are a nation of people more willing to talk about our vulnerabilities.
Acknowledging one’s mental health challenges and then seeking treatment provides hope that mental well-being – recovery from mental health or substance use challenges – is within reach for everyone.
More people now understand the value of caring for their mental well-being. Teens talk freely about their mental health, together and on social media. An increasing number of employers offer mental health programs to workers or access to care through employee assistance programs.
We’re also talking openly about substance use and overdose deaths, which have reached record numbers. Because of these conversations, we are chipping away at the stigma surrounding treatment for mental health and substance use challenges.
We also are chipping away at the fear and discrimination preventing people from seeking care. But it’s just the beginning.
Access to services is essential
Eliminating stigma represents a single goal. We cannot be mentally well and actively thriving if we are unable to access services, so we must also destroy barriers to access. Among adults 18 or older in 2019, 13.1 million people had a serious mental illness. Of those, 6.2 million people – nearly half – reported an unmet need for mental health services in the past year.
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Black and Hispanic adults have been more likely than the general population to report symptoms of anxiety and depressive conditions since the pandemic began, the Kaiser Family Foundation reported.
The rise of digital mental health and substance use treatment and supports can help break down barriers to access. Telehealth visits for mental health increased by 556% between March 11 and April 22, 2020, according to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration.
Addressing a crippling workforce shortage should represent a top priority of state and federal lawmakers because mental health and substance use treatment organizations continue to have difficulty meeting demand for treatment, and that demand won’t subside anytime soon.
Pandemic will have long-term effects
A recent Government Accountability Office report pointed out that “it will take time to determine the long-term behavioral health effects resulting from the pandemic.”
A majority of U.S. mayors also have raised alarm about our nation’s mental health crisis, identifying the mental well-being of people in their communities as the greatest challenge caused by the pandemic. The new Survey of Mayors, conducted by the Boston University Initiative on Cities, found that 52% of mayors identified mental health and substance use as their top concern. Not unemployment. Not poverty. Not housing.
We must continue chipping away until we no longer stigmatize people or the treatment they need and deserve. Our mental well-being depends on it.
Chuck Ingoglia is president and CEO of the National Council for Mental Wellbeing.