Facts about Mental Illness Facts about Mental Illness Some Common Types of Mental Illness Depression is a mood disorder characterized by a lasting feeling of extreme sadness or helplessness. It is estimated that about 10 million American adults experience depression each year, but that only one-third of these seek treatment.
Depression is the most successfully treated of all the major mental illnesses.
A person with suicidal thoughts should seek help immediately. Bi-Polar Disorder is also a mood disorder. Someone experiencing some or all of the symptoms of mania, or periods of mania and depression, should seek treatment if the symptoms persist more than 2 weeks, if they are causing impairment in the person's usual functioning. Schizophrenia is a group of disorders characterized by unusual thoughts, emotions, and behavior. As with depression and mania, schizophrenia is the result of a biochemical imbalance in the person's brain.