Facts and Myths

Myth: Mental health problems are rare.

Fact: No, they’re much more common than most people think.Up to one in four people will experience some kind of mental health problem in the course of a year, taking up between 10 and 20 percent of GP’s time.

Myth: It could never happen to me.

Fact: There is no divide between people with mental health problems and everyone else.Although there are some risk factors - from bereavement to genetics - mental ill health can affect anyone.

Myth: People with mental health problems never recover.

Fact: With the right support and treatment, most people with mental health problems get better, and many recover completely.For instance, around a quarter of people with schizophrenia will eventually recover.Only a small handful of conditions are untreatable, but even here a lot can be done to help people cope and live as normal a life as possible

Myth: ’Mental illness’ and learning disability are similar things.

Fact: No, they’re very different.Learning disabilities (e.g. Down’s Syndrome) result from genetic or development factors, or damage to the brain, often at birth.They affect a person’s IQ, usually permanently, and usually can’t be controlled with treatment.Mental health problems (e.g. depression, schizophrenia) often don’t appear in childhood, aren’t as a result of damage to the brain, and don’t usually have a permanent effect on the IQ.It’s possible to completely recover from mental health problems, and many do.

Myth: "It’s their own fault" or " people who are depressed ought to snap out of it".

Fact: Mental health problems aren’t self inflicted, any more than physical illness is. People with depression have serious, persistent symptoms which they can’t change, no matter how hard they try.If untreated, depression can have serious consequences: 70% of suicides are committed by people who have experienced some form of depression.

Myth: People with mental health problems are a danger to the public.

Fact: No. They are much more likely to harm themselves than anyone else. The public is more at risk from young men under the influence of alcohol.

Myth: People with schizophrenia have split personality.

Fact: This false belief is based on the idea that the behaviour and personality of people with schizophrenia swings dramatically between normal and dangerously disturbed.Such "Jekyll and Hyde" swings in personality are entirely fictional, and do not occur in schizophrenia or any other mental health problem.Schizophrenia is not uncommon, and the majority of people with schizophrenia lead ordinary lives.

Myth: You can tell someone with a mental health problem from how they look or behave.

Fact: You would hardly ever know from the outside that someone is experiencing a mental health problem.Yes, there are signs and symptoms, but even the professionals can take a long time to make a full diagnosis.

Myth: Teenagers don’t suffer from ’real’ mental health problems - they’re just moody.

Fact: No. Around one in ten children and young people experience mental health problems severe enough to need professional help.The suicide rate for young men has risen by 170% since 1985.