May is recognized as Mental Health Awareness Month, and mental health professionals say the month serves as an important reminder that many people may be struggling silently with anxiety, depression, or other mental health concerns.
Lacey Schmitt-Monson, a program therapist with Senior Life Solutions at Franklin General Hospital, tells RadioOnTheGo News some of the most common warning signs can show up in everyday life.
“A lot of times what we see coming into our office is people saying, ‘well, I don’t think I have a depression problem,” Schmitt-Monson says. “And then we start exploring like, well, how does that manifest in your behavior? Like what are some of the behaviors you’re doing or not doing anymore? Like, I don’t really feel like going anywhere. I don’t have any motivation. I can’t concentrate. I get really mad really fast. So those are definitely warning signs.”
Schmitt-Monson says getting help can sometimes be more difficult in rural communities, where access to services may be limited and concerns about privacy or stigma can prevent people from reaching out. She says people should not let fear of what others may think stop them from seeking treatment or support.
“And I can tell you nine times out of 10, you’re going to have people that are like, ‘they got help? Oh, I’m going to.’ Instead of that one response of, ‘well, that’s weird. Suck it up.’ Right? So what I say, if you are worried about that and that one person making judgment, well, one, that does not matter in the long run. In the long run, you’re not going to care,” Schmitt-Monson says. “You just want help. You just want to feel better. But the other piece of advice I have that people sometimes do not like to hear is what other people think of you as none of your business. So we have to keep that in mind when we are trying to feel better mentally.”
Schmitt-Monson says one in four adults will experience a mental illness within a given year, but only about half of those individuals actually seek treatment.
She also points to high school and college students as another group that can face significant mental health challenges, especially students heavily involved in extracurricular activities. Balancing academics, athletics and social expectations can sometimes become overwhelming.
“There’s this absolute pressure to perform at a high rate in every area, not just athletics, but then there are studies and they’re expected to keep it up,” Schmitt-Monson says. “They’re expected to get all A’s, but how do you balance all of those things, especially when you’re a young age and you’re just trying to figure out who you are and where you fit in. So out of those one in four adults that struggle, it is twice as high for kids. But one good piece of information about that is since that crisis hotline has come out, the 988, they have seen a reduction in teen suicide. So that shows us that we’re moving in the right direction. We just got to make sure that resources are there for people when they need them.”
Mental health professionals say recognizing warning signs early can help connect more people with support and treatment.
Full interview below
