May is Mental Health Awareness Month

Help us make a difference and raise awareness!

Mental Health Facts

• 1 in 5 (46.6 million) adults in the United States experience a mental health condition in a given year.
• 1 in 25 (11.2 million) adults in the United States experience a serious mental illness in a given year.
• Approximately 46.6 million adults in the United States face the reality of managing a mental illness every day.
• Half of all lifetime mental health conditions begin by age
  14 and 75% by age 24, but early intervention programs can help.
• Up to 90% of those who die by suicide have an underlying mental illness as revealed by psychological autopsy. 46% of those who die by suicide have a diagnosed mental illness.
• Suicide is the 10th leading cause of death in the United States. With effective care, suicidal thoughts are treatable, and suicide is preventable.
• Individuals with mental health conditions face an average 11-year delay between experiencing symptoms and
  starting treatment.
• Common barriers to treatment include the cost of mental health care and insurance, prejudice and discrimination, and structural barriers like transportation.
• Even though most people can experience relief from symptoms and support for their recovery in treatment, less than half of the adults in the United States get the help they need.

What Is Stigma?

People experiencing mental health conditions often face rejection, bullying and even discrimination. This can make their journey to recovery longer and more difficult. Stigma is when someone, or you yourself, views you in a negative way because you have a mental health condition. Some people describe stigma as shame that can be felt as a judgement from someone else or a feeling that is internal, something that confuses feeling bad with being bad.

Navigating life with a mental health condition can be tough, and the isolation, blame and secrecy that is often encouraged by stigma can create huge challenges to reaching out, getting needed support and living well. Learning how to cope with stigma and how to avoid and address stigma are important for all of us.

If you, or someone you know is in crisis, the following organizations assist with mental health in our area:

Channel Marker

410-822-4611

Eastern Shore Mobile Crisis

888-407-8018

For All Seasons

800-310-7273

Mental Health Association of the Eastern Shore

888-407-8018

Mid Shore Behavioral Health

888-407-8018