If a loved one seems depressed and apathetic to you, it may just be a “bad day”, a character trait or manifestation of a mental disorder. Only a doctor can make a diagnosis. But relatives and friends can also notice the first signs of mental illness. You just need to be more attentive to each other.
According to statistics, a significant part of the world’s population suffers from mental disorders (including their mild forms) (for example, in the USA – 20% of the population). But it is not always noticeable or obvious to others.
The first manifestations of mental problems are easy to miss. Sometimes even doctors do not notice them, not to mention friends and relatives. The reason may be both a lack of information and various prejudices, including professional ones. This is especially true for patients with unusual symptoms.
Meanwhile, it is very important to identify the disorder at an early stage and provide the person with the necessary help and support. This greatly increases the likelihood of recovery. If left untreated, the disorder can progress.
Many patients, not fully understanding what is happening to them, try to “drown out” severe symptoms with alcohol or drugs. In order to notice a mental disorder in time and help a person, it is important to be able to recognize hidden signs, which are often easily confused with manifestations of other diseases or just character traits.
Here are some of those signs.
Constant fatigue
It is hardly surprising that mental disorders can lead to constant fatigue. For example, if a person suffers from undiagnosed obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), he is constantly tormented by extremely unpleasant obsessive thoughts, which he tries to fight with the help of certain rituals.
Of course, this fruitless struggle takes away from him a huge amount of strength. In addition, he has to cope with other responsibilities (work, school, family). The person also goes out of their way to hide their symptoms from others for fear of appearing “sick” and facing judgment. Trying to appear “normal” takes a huge amount of energy from him.
Chronic fatigue in psychiatric disorders may be associated with psychological, biological and social factors. Therefore, if one of your relatives or acquaintances complains all the time about the lack of strength for no apparent reason, it may be worth asking him about what is happening to him.
physical pain
Our body and mind are inextricably linked. Physical illness affects our mental state and vice versa. According to medical research, up to 50% of patients suffering from chronic pain also experience symptoms of depression. In turn, anxiety and depression can cause stomach and digestive problems, body aches and headaches, and many other physical symptoms.
If one of your friends or loved ones is constantly suffering from various pains that are not related to physical illnesses, the reason for this may be a mental disorder.
Perfectionism
Some mental illnesses distort our perception of ourselves and our environment. Sometimes this is expressed in the fact that we begin to make unrealistic demands on ourselves. For example, people who suffer from anxiety or eating disorders may try to compensate by striving for everything in their life to be “perfect”: school, work, body, diet…
But none of us are perfect. The desire for self-improvement is commendable, but it is important to realistically assess your capabilities and not make excessive demands on yourself. Perfectionism can be a warning sign that indicates underlying mental problems.
Lack of emotion
Lack of emotion is a very common symptom of mental disorders that is rarely talked about. It seems to us that mentally ill people necessarily suffer from strong and difficult experiences: depression, anxiety, melancholy or emotional overexcitation.
This is often true, but the other extreme cannot be discounted. Some patients experience the exact opposite symptom: they do not feel anything at all, they become indifferent to both themselves and the world around them. For example, when depressed, we may lose all interest in our former hobbies and people who were important to us.
The inability to experience pleasure is called “anhedonia” in psychiatry. Everyone has bad days, but if a person has not been happy with anything for a long time, this is an alarming sign.
avoidance behavior
We all sometimes try to avoid some business or communication with certain people. The reasons can be different: procrastination, stress, or just a lack of interest. But if the avoidance behavior becomes a habit, it could be a sign of deeper problems.
For example, patients with panic disorder often begin to avoid situations that trigger their panic attacks. People with schizophrenia may also withdraw from certain activities or social interactions because of their delusional beliefs (for example, seeing something or someone as “evil” or dangerous).
Some mentally ill people try to deal with their symptoms by simply avoiding anything that makes them uncomfortable. In doing so, they impose severe restrictions on themselves, convincing themselves that they are “not capable” of doing certain things. Often this only exacerbates their symptoms.
Mental disorders can manifest themselves in everyone and are expressed in different ways. Awareness and recognition of the problem is the first step on the road to recovery.