When it comes to mental health disorders, there are a lot of words that get thrown around; comments like “I am so OCD” give us an insight into which terms are popular, which makes them seem like common mental health disorders. Nevertheless, the popularity of these terms does not mean that there is a degree of understanding about the disorders mentioned, or even how common they are.
Which mental health disorders are common?
Beyond the trite remarks that you may hear from time to time, many of the disorders that have become part of our lexicon are colloquially used precisely because they are so common. There are some, however, that you may not have heard of, which shows the gap between awareness and the situation affecting millions of adults in the US.
Below are 7 common mental health disorders you are likely to encounter and should know more about before you use them in conversation:
- Depression
- Generalized Anxiety Disorder – GAD
- Obsessive Compulsive Disorder – OCD
- Panic Disorder – PD
- Phobias
- Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder – PTSD
- Social Anxiety Disorder
How common are these mental health disorders?
Even though you might think some are self-explanatory, it is important to gain a deeper understanding of each, starting with how many adults in the US are affected:
- Depression – According to the NIH about 21 million adults in the US had a major depressive episode in 2020
- GAD – About 6.8 million adults in the US have Generalized Anxiety Disorder according to the ADAA. Less than half get treatment
- OCD – The IOCDF estimates that between 2 and 3 million US adults suffer from Obsessive Compulsive Disorder
- PTSD – Veterans Affairs calculates that around 12 million adults have Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder in any given year
- PD – This mental health disorder affects approximately 6 million adults in the US, according to the ADAA
- Phobias – With 19 million adults estimated to have a phobia (an extreme or irrational feeling or aversion towards something specific), – this is the second most common mental health disorder in the US
- Social Anxiety Disorder – there are 15 million sufferers in the US, making it the third most common mental health issue in the US
Can people suffer from two or more mental health disorders at the same time?
It is important to note that some people will have overlapping disorders. For example, depression can come hand in hand with anxiety disorders. Therefore, it is difficult to get a clear picture of how common these mental health disorders are, combined.
The figure that comes up quite frequently is the 53 million adults in the US living with some kind of mental health issue. If you total the numbers from the list above, you will see that there are approximately 82.8 million people suffering from the most common mental health disorders, based on the assumption that each adult is contending with just one mental health disorder, which is likely not the case.
Mental health professionals can help
This adds a layer of complexity to the issue of how common these mental health disorders are. Mental health professionals can help adults with more than one mental health disorder, even when it is complicated.
The most important way to enable more people to get treatment for their mental health ailments is via awareness and technology, which in turn will bring the cost down. It is equally crucial for adults to recognize that they might have a disorder so they can seek help.
Our doctors can help
Through awareness, more people will be able to recognize that they might need help; with technology, any telehealth initiative can reach those who are most in need, because costs are significantly lower. Antidote Health is part of the solution when it comes to cutting the cost of healthcare without compromising on quality. In fact, at Antidote Health, we use a method called Enhanced Evidence Based Care that has been shown in clinical studies to improve treatment results for many mental health conditions by up to two-fold compared with standard care.
If you think you might be suffering from one of the mental health conditions above, or any other that might not be as popular or as common, you can reach out to us, 24/7. Let us help raise awareness so we can help more people find an affordable way to take care of their mental health. Hopefully, we will be able to familiarize people with common mental health disorders that we don’t hear much about and treat as many patients as we can.
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