Unaddressed mental health problems can have a negative influence on homelessness, poverty, employment, safety, and the local economy. They may impact the productivity of local businesses and health care costs, impede the ability of children and youth to succeed in school, and lead to family and community disruption. Although the mind and body are often viewed as being separate, mental and physical health are actually closely related. Good mental health can positively affect your physical health. In return, poor mental health can negatively affect your physical health.
Here are just 10 of the many issues that affect mental health:
Physical Health
Your mental health plays a huge role in your general well-being. Being in a good mental state can keep you healthy and help prevent serious health conditions. A study found that positive psychological well-being can reduce the risks of heart attacks and strokes. On the other hand, poor mental health can lead to poor physical health or harmful behaviors.
Chronic Diseases
Depression has been linked to many chronic illnesses. These illnesses include diabetes, asthma, cancer, cardiovascular disease, and arthritis. Schizophrenia has also been linked to a higher risk of heart and respiratory diseases. Mental health conditions can also make dealing with a chronic illness more difficult. The mortality rate from cancer and heart disease is higher among people with depression or other mental health conditions.
Sleep Problems
People with mental health conditions are more likely to suffer from sleep disorders, like insomnia or sleep apnea. Insomnia can make it hard to fall asleep or stay asleep. Sleep apnea leads to breathing problems, which can cause you to wake up frequently. Around 50% to 80% of people with mental health conditions will also have sleeping problems. Only 10% to 18% of the general population experience sleeping problems. While conditions like depression, anxiety, or bipolar disorder may lead to sleep problems, sleep problems can also make existing mental health conditions worse.
Smoking
People with mental health conditions are more likely to smoke than those who do not have mental health conditions. Among smokers, people with mental health conditions are more likely to smoke a greater number of cigarettes. People with depression have lower levels of the chemical dopamine. Dopamine influences positive feelings in your brain. The nicotine in cigarettes triggers the production of the chemical dopamine, so smoking may be used as a way to relieve symptoms of depression. However, since nicotine only offers temporary relief, you may feel a recurring need to smoke, which may lead to possible addiction.
Access to Health Care
People with mental health conditions are less likely to have access to adequate health care. It may also be more difficult for people with mental health conditions to take care of their physical health When you have a mental health condition, it can be hard to seek care, take prescriptions regularly, or get enough exercise.
Housing
Poor housing – with damp and mould problems, antisocial neighbours, uncertain tenancies or overcrowded conditions, for example – can make our mental health problems worse. One in five of us has experienced mental health issues because of housing problems, according to a report by Shelter. Compared with the general population, people with mental health conditions are: one and a half times more likely to live in rented housing; twice as likely to be unhappy with their home; four times as likely to say that it makes their health worse.
Homelessness
People with mental illness experience homelessness for longer periods of time and have less contact with family and friends. In general, 30-35% of those experiencing homelessness, and up to 75% of women experiencing homelessness, have mental illnesses. 20-25% of people experiencing homelessness suffer from concurrent disorders (severe mental illness and addictions). Delusional thinking may lead them to withdraw from friends, family and other people. This loss of support leaves them fewer coping resources in times of trouble. Mental illness can also impair a person’s ability to be resilient and resourceful; it can cloud thinking and impair judgment. For all these reasons, people with mental illness are at greater risk of experiencing homelessness.
Poverty
People with poor mental health are more susceptible to the three main factors that can lead to homelessness: poverty, disaffiliation, and personal vulnerability. Because they often lack the capacity to sustain employment, they have little income. Poverty in childhood and among adults can cause poor mental health through social stresses, stigma and trauma. Equally, mental health problems can lead to impoverishment through loss of employment or underemployment, or fragmentation of social relationships. This vicious cycle is in reality even more complex, as many people with mental health problems move in and out of poverty, living precarious lives.
Crime
It is more common for people with particular mental illnesses to commit crimes and be incarcerated for them. This is particularly true for people affected by psychotic disorders, where symptoms such as agitation, delusions or hallucinations can directly motivate criminal behaviour. Psychotic episodes accompanying particular mental illnesses can lead to a person engaging in offending behaviour. Studies have also revealed that symptoms of bipolar disorder can directly relate to crimes. Additionally, where a person is suffering from anxiety or extreme stress they are at greater risk of acting out of violence due to an increase in anger, agitation and/or impulsivity.
Economic Loss
From addiction to dementia to schizophrenia, almost 1 billion people worldwide suffer from a mental disorder. Lost productivity as a result of two of the most common mental disorders, anxiety and depression, costs the global economy US$ 1 trillion each year. In total, poor mental health was estimated to cost the world economy approximately $2·5 trillion per year in poor health and reduced productivity in 2010, a cost projected to rise to $6 trillion by 2030.
