Psychiatric problems affect people of all ages, in all income groups, in urban and rural areas and in all religions. No one is immune to mental illness. Depending on the type and severity of the mental illness, a person can learn to cope, improve or experience a full recovery with proper care and treatment. As many as eight in ten people suffering from mental illness can effectively return to normal, productive lives. When psychotherapy is added to the treatment, these individuals can better cope with the social, emotional and vocational complications brought on by the illness.
Many people suffering from schizophrenia can return to the community.
Unfortunately, only one in five people with a diagnosable mental disorder seeks treatment. Serious depression, once thought to affect only adults, is now known to affect one in 50 children. The vast majority of people with mental illnesses are not violent. When many people think of mental illness, they conjure up images of a person tortured by demons only he sees and voices only he hears. Hallucinations or delusions are symptoms of untreated mental illnesses.