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MENTAL HEALTH AND MENTAL ILLNESS… BY THE NUMBERS:

20 – 25% – Percentage of people in the United States who had a diagnosable mental illness during the past year. It turns out, this percentage holds true globally and across the spectrum; regardless of race, gender, religion, location, political persuasion or socio-economic status – mental illness is the great equalizer. It is 100% immune to segregation It is fully diverse and multi-cultural in its impact. In this, we all become the same.

$193 Billion – Estimated total lost earnings during the past year due to mental illness.

59% – Percentage of U.S. adults with a mental health condition in the past year who did not seek treatment. Research shows negative stereotypes often prevent those with mental illness from seeking professional help.

One Third – The proportion of adults with mental illness who are likely to become victims of violence within a given six month period. Research published by the American Psychological Association. We are much less likely to be perpetrators of crime than we are victimized by it. Our illness can actually find us targeted by crime.

$16,306 – The estimated reduction in earnings for a person with a serious mental illness, according to a 2008 report published in the American Journal of Psychiatry.

2.5 Trillion Dollars – The approximate global cost of mental illness in 2010, according to information presented by health economists at the World Economic Forum.  This means mental health issues were one of the largest economic costs when it came to health care – even more than diabetes, respiratory diseases and cancer combined, according to the the National Institutes for Mental Health (NIMH). The economists estimated that figure will rise to $6 Trillion Dollars by the year 2030!

75% – Estimated percentage of people with mental illness who feel like others are not caring or sympathetic when it comes to their condition, according to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC).

Take away?  We must work together to do better. Because we ALL deserve a path to wellness, to be seen as a whole person, not as our illness,  & to live meaningfully – in a more compassionate society!