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Mental Health

The Health Service Navigator is aligned with expert health resources, including health charities and advocacy groups, to bring you the most reliable health information available.

The Mental Health section is presented in partnership with the Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA).

Good mental health is not just about managing serious disorders such as schizophrenia or depression, but also about experiencing a balanced sense of happiness and well being. Controlling stress, enjoying your relationships with others and being physically and socially active are all important components of mental health. We spend much more time looking after our physical health than our mental health, yet one Canadian in five will experience some form of mental illness in their lifetime. That makes mental health problems more common than heart disease!

• Understanding mental illness
• Mental fitness tips
• Do you need to talk to someone?

Understanding Mental Health

Mood Disorders
Everyone has emotional “highs” and “lows,” but if you have a mood disorder they are more intense and last longer. Depression and bipolar disorder are examples of mood disorders

Anxiety Disorders
If you suffer from intense, prolonged feelings of fright or distress for no obvious reason, you may have an anxiety disorder. Phobias and obsessive-compulsive disorder are examples.

Eating Disorders
Eating disorders are not actually about food, but stem from some deeper problem that is too painful or difficult to face directly. Anorexia and bulimia are examples of eating disorders.

Attention Deficit Disorders
Most common in school-age children, these disorders cause inattentive, overly impulsive and sometimes hyperactive behaviour. Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is an example.

Schizophrenia
Schizophrenia is a biological disorder of the mind that can cause delusions, hallucinations, lack of motivation, social withdrawal and thought disorders. It affects one person in 100, and usually strikes between the ages of 16 and 30.

Suicide
Suicide may seem like a symptom rather than a separate disorder, but otherwise mentally healthy people can become suicidal as a reaction to overwhelming pain and anguish. The suicidal state of mind has been described as constricted and filled with self-hatred, rejection and hopelessness.

Psychosis
Psychosis is a serious but treatable disturbance in brain function that causes loss of contact with reality. It usually causes changes to thought and behaviour, and often gets worse over time unless treated.

Youth Self-Injury
Some young people, usually in adolescence, will take to cutting, burning or otherwise harming their bodies in some way. The behaviour is connected to an inability to effectively deal with intense emotions.

Getting help
Unlike most physical problems, it may not be immediately obvious to you that you need help with a mental issue. Watch for the signs and don’t hesitate to look for help the moment you suspect a problem.

Here’s where to start seeking help:

In person Your doctor Your local hospital emergency department CMHA regional offices

Online Find a mental health professional CMHA Canadian Psychiatric Association The Canadian Association for Suicide Prevention

By phone Suicide crisis lines by region CMHA regional offices PEPP (Prevention and Early Intervention for Psychoses) 519-667-6777 Kids Help Phone 800-668-6868

Other Resources

• Myths about Mental Illness
• Anxiety
• Child and youth mental health
• Depression and bipolar
• Obsessive Compulsive Disorder
• Schizophrenia
• Suicide and suicide prevention

Putting the “men” in “mental health”

Men are much less likely than women to seek help for a mental or emotional problem. But studies show men suffer from mental illness at about the same rate as women. If you’re a man and you have some of the signs of mental illness, don’t try to “tough it out.” Get help today.

Signs you should seek help

If any of these apply to you, don’t wait. Contact your doctor today.

• You are so angry or so sad that you are unable to cope with day-to-day life?
• Your physical health is suffering and every day you feel like your body is letting you down?
• You don’t know which way to turn, and like a deer caught in the headlights, you are unable to move?
• Life seems so much better through the bottom of a bottle or with the help of drugs?
• You are constantly fighting with your spouse, or you have pulled back from your relationship with your partner?
• There is no joy left in life?
• Death seems like a better option than life?

* Source: CMHA

By The Numbers

• 20% of Canadians will personally experience a mental illness in their lifetime
• Approximately 8% of adults will experience major depression at some time in their lives
• About 1% of Canadians will experience bipolar disorder (or "manic depression")
• Schizophrenia affects 1% of the Canadian population
• Anxiety disorders affect 5% of the household population, causing mild to severe impairment
• Suicide accounts for 24% of all deaths among 15-24 year olds and 16% among 25-44 year olds

* Source: CMHA

TALK TO YOUR DOCTOR

Reading about conditions online should never replace a visit to your doctor. The information provided here can help you get educated about various conditions and their treatments. Always seek the advice of a physician or other licensed health care professional regarding any questions you have about your medical condition(s) and treatment(s).