How Do I Know if I Have a Mental Illness?
Mental illness – health conditions that affect your mood, thinking or behavior – affects 1 in 5 adults in the U.S. each year. Chances are, you’ve heard of depression, anxiety, or many other mental health conditions. And maybe right now you’re struggling through something, wondering if what you’re experiencing is a mental illness? But how can you tell?
Look for Symptoms
Just like with a physical health condition, your mental health also has symptoms. Think about it like this:
There are days when your physical symptoms fluctuate up or down. One day, you may have a headache or a scratchy throat or low energy, but you may not consider yourself “sick.” So how do you tell when your physical symptoms equal an illness?
- A sudden change for the worse. For example, yesterday you felt fine but today you have a fever and an upset stomach.
- You cannot function properly. Maybe you have a migraine that prevents you from getting out of bed or doesn’t allow you to go to work or school.
Mental health is the same, but instead of looking for physical symptoms (i.e, a cough), you look at your thoughts, feelings and behaviors. Here are some examples from Mental Health America that may help determine if you are struggling with a mental illness:
- You used to be really cheerful and outgoing, but lately all you want to do is sit in your room .
- Things you used to enjoy have lost their appeal. Food doesn’t taste as good as it used to, and all your favorite music just sounds boring.
- You’re always falling asleep in class. It’s hard to pay attention and do well in school.
- Your friend is talking and you’re trying hard to listen, but you can’t concentrate. All you can think about are bad things that might happen to you.
- Recently you started hearing voices that no one else seems to hear .
- You can’t leave the house without checking all the locks several times. You do this so much that it’s making you late for work.
- You’re always irritated, and you can’t stop snapping at people .
You probably won’t experience all of these things, but they each signal a change in your thoughts, feelings or behaviors.
Next Steps
So what do you do now? If you think you may have a mental illness, there are a few things you can do.
- Take a mental health screen online. Mental Health America has several screening tools on their website that are a great place to start.
- Talk to someone about what you’re going through. Try a family member or a trusted friend if you’re not sure where to begin.
- Contact a therapist or psychologist to set up an appointment. You can schedule a 15-minute phone consultation with our office to learn more about a psychological evaluation and our therapy services. Not quite ready to take that step? That’s okay – send us a message instead.
Finding out that you may have a mental illness can be overwhelming and scary. Give yourself some time to process your emotions. Don’t be too discouraged – mental illness is common and recovery is possible!
References
How do I know if I have a mental illness?
https://screening.mhanational.org/content/how-do-i-know-if-i-have-mental-illness/
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