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The 5 Worst Mental Health Misconceptions
Let’s Clear Up All The Bullshit
As part of my mission to educate others about mental health, I want to address many of the misconceptions surrounding mental health. Despite many attempts to destigmatise it, a lot of people still act like mental health problems are something shameful. One of the only benefits of this COVID-19 pandemic is that it’s had such a massive impact on worldwide mental health that it’s not possible to hide it away anymore. So now we’re talking about it, let’s clear away a lot some of the untruths and general crap out there.
Misconception 1: Mental Illness Is Rare
As I just said, the reduction in already inadequate provision of mental health services as well as lockdowns, deaths, job losses and being trapped at home with a small group of people has meant more people than ever are admitting they have problems with their mental health. So, how widespread is it?
There are no definite figures, but in 2017, the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation released their Global Burden of Disease study. The study suggested that as many as 1 in 10 people globally live with a mental health disorder like depression, anxiety and dysthymia and bipolar disorder. I think it’s time to admit it’s a big problem.