When I read statistics like these, I wonder why we still whisper.
The National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) states that untreated mental illness costs the United States more than 100 billion dollars each year and that between 70 and 90 percent of men and women with depression reduce their symptoms and have an improved quality of life when they partake in a combination of pharmacological and psychosocial treatments. Regarding treatment, we are now one step closer to helping those in need. On September 18th, 2007, the Senate passed a mental health bill that would require equal health insurance coverage for mental and physical illnesses when policies cover both. A vote for this Mental Health Parity bill, or the Paul Wellstone Mental Health and Addiction Equity Act, which is what it will be called in the House, will happen in October. I urge you to call your Representatives now in support.
NAMI says, “Stigma erodes confidence that mental disorders are real, treatable health conditions. We have allowed stigma and a now unwarranted sense of hopelessness to erect attitudinal, structural, and financial barriers to effective treatment and recovery. It is time to take these barriers down.”
I’m looking forward to demolishing this stigma by walking through its barriers, and if you have someone in your life that is struggling, or if you have lost someone to suicide, I hope you’ll join me for the walk to do the same.
Related Story: Surviving Trauma: How the Support Group Saved My Life
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