What is mental illness? The Mayo Clinic defines mental illness as a “disorder that affects mood, thinking, and behavior.” Generally speaking, all people struggle with different variations in these three aspects on occasion. However, you may have a mental illness if your symptoms continue, repeat themselves frequently, cause stress, and impact your ability to function normally. Read on to learn more about the different types of mental illness and how Ethan Crossing Recovery can help you cope with mental illness through our mental health treatment program.
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Different Types of Mental Illness
Let’s explore the types of mental health disorders. There are many different kinds of mental illnesses that impact different aspects of an individual.
Mood Disorders
A mood disorder includes types of mental illness that cause changes in mood. These especially influence how a person functions and relates to others. Notably, bipolar and depression are the two most common mood disorders.
Anxiety Disorders
Anxiety disorders involve fear or worry and you may need an anxiety treatment program. This worry may be generalized and omnipresent. In contrast, an anxiety disorder can be specific, such as an overwhelming fear of spiders. Some types of mental health disorders that fall into this category include:
- General anxiety
- Social anxiety
- Phobias
- Panic disorders
A person with an anxiety disorder may experience elevated heart rate, chest pain, and trouble breathing. They may also experience life-disruptive symptoms like stuttering or freezing up.
Personality Disorders
A personality disorder involves an unhealthy way of thinking that impacts how a person treats others or life. A person who has a narcissistic personality disorder, for example, has an inflated sense of self-worth. They may need constant praise and feel justified in hurting others based upon their unhealthy belief system. On the other hand, a borderline personality disorder is both a mood and personality disorder. It involves alternating between feelings of great importance and inadequacy. As these thought patterns shift, so do the moods of the person who has a personality disorder.
Psychotic Disorders
Psychotic disorders involve hallucinations and delusions. Individuals who have psychotic disorders often struggle to distinguish between reality and illusion. They may act out against others because of perceived threats. Schizophrenia is one of the most familiar types of mental illness in this category.
Eating Disorders
Eating disorders involve an unhealthy relationship with food. People with eating disorders may, for example, obsess about food, treat food as an enemy, or turn to food for comfort. If this disorder is left untreated, eating disorders can cause severe physical and emotional health challenges.
Trauma-Related Disorders
When a person has experienced a very emotionally painful event, trauma may occur. The event or series of events (e.g., ongoing abuse) changes how a person relates to the world. They experience continual or episodic distress related to the trauma. One of the more commonly known trauma-related disorders is PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder).
Substance Abuse Disorders (SUD)
If you have SUD, then a substance is controlling your thoughts, mood, feelings, and behaviors. Even when you are not using the substance, it still has control over an individual. It drives an individual to use the substance again and again. Even though an individual may want to quit using a substance, they are unable to because of their addiction. Like most types of mental illness, people can manage SUD. For example, a treatment plan may include medication, an individual therapy program or group therapy program, lifestyle changes, and coping strategies. If you are suffering from SUD and another mental health disorder, you may need a dual diagnosis treatment program. These programs effectively treat two or more mental illnesses together for more lasting recovery.
Ethan Crossing Helps With All Types of Mental Illness
Ethan Crossing Recovery’s compassionate team of mental health and addictions professionals are ready to help you overcome your mental health disorder. You can live a more fulfilling life. Additionally, we offer dual diagnosis treatment, which provides a more sustainable path to recovery. Our programs include settings like:
- Residential treatment program
- Partial hospitalization treatment program (PHP)
- Intensive outpatient treatment program (IOP)
- Outpatient treatment program
If you are struggling with one or more of these types of mental illnesses, call us at 833.691.0736 so you can get on the path to a sustainable recovery.