Mental Health Issues

According to New York Daily, about 42 million American adults suffer from mental illnesses, enduring conditions such as depression, anxiety, schizophrenia, and bipolar disorder. Mental health is a condition concerning one’s psychological and emotional well-being. People who are diagnosed with a mentally ill have major shifts in mood, thinking and/or behavior. Those who agree to seek treatment, consult with a counselor and agree to be labeled has mentally ill. This allows them to have access to medication, housing, counseling and money. However, the label “mentally ill” tend to carry a negative connotation due to the misrepresentation regrading this community. This can affect how they are seen by society, especially when seeking work, in court

So why does it still exist? Many claim that a person diagnosed with a mental health disorder are not mentally or emotionally stable for a job. Mental health disorders such as Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHA), posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), schizophrenia, deep depression and bipolar disorder are lifelong conditions. However, with the right treatments, people who are diagnosed with these conditions are still capable of working. In a recent study conducted by Heather Stuart a notable journalist in Current Opinion Psychiatry (COP) states that sixty-one percent of people with a mental health disorder are able and willing to work. Employment discrimination is a real issue in the United States and people have had real accounts of being discriminated against without even realizing it. I interviewed a young man named Devon McMillan, who has dealt with mental health issues most of his life and is still able to obtain a steady job even though he has been discriminated against due to his disorders. In this interview, he expresses the dilemmas in his life with being “mentally ill”. Devon McMillan, 24 was diagnosed with bipolar disorder and ADHA when he was about fourteen years old. Meaning that Devon deals with alternating periods of elation and depression (mood swings) with attention difficulty, hyperactivity, and impulsiveness. Growing up was difficult for him because never felt normal. The mood swings were a nightmare for him and sometimes he is unable to adjust to certain environments. However, he was still able to live “happy” life. He attends a therapy session and takes medication to lighten his conditions. He now works at a group homes and mentors the youth who deal with mental health disorders. He volunteers at the Fire Department and he is a musician at local churches. In his twenty-four years of living, he has had eight