Cydne Campbell

Prof. Hughes

ENG 1201

23 March 2020

Literature Review

Mental health disorders are more common in people now than it was a couple decades

ago. Treatments need to be found in order to lower this number or lower the severity of these

cases. Suicide is the second leading cause of death due to many of these mental health illnesses.

An immediate family member has multiple mental health disorders and for me to understand

them better I chose to do more research on this topic. What are the best treatments for PTSD,

depression, anxiety, and other mental health disorders? Throughout my research, there has

been some reoccurring ideas and treatments, such as, psychotherapy and possibly taking anti-

depressants. Although, these sources have many themes in common, they also disagree on and

have their own opinions on different topics regarding these illnesses.

While Elaine Howley, in her article “What Mental Health Statistics Can Tell Us,”

describes in depth the statistics of how many Americans that are diagnosed with mental health

illnesses go untreated. Meanwhile, the World Health Organization, in their article “Mental

Disorders,” explain that the statistics for people who are diagnosed with depression go

untreated is more significant than the overall number of Americans who go untreated for

mental health in general.

 Although, all these sources discuss ways to get treatment and how to get help, they all

have a little different opinion in what would work best. The Mayo Clinic staff, discuss on

their website in the section of “Diagnosis and Treatment” that the best way to heal and

recover is through a combination of treatments at once, regardless of which illness you have.

The National Institute of Mental Health analyzes how certain illnesses can still be treatable

even if another illness is present. The National Institute then goes into depth about the

different types of treatment but says that one specific one could work best for certain

situations.

Throughout the world there are many opinions, disagreements, and misconceptions

around mental health. On Psychology Today, Amy Morin discusses the five most common

misconceptions. The topmost common misconception is “You’re either mentally ill or

mentally healthy.” Not everyone is 100% mentally healthy ever. Just like some physically

healthy people may experience minor health issues, not everyone will always be 100%

mentally healthy. “You can’t prevent mental health problems.” You can’t prevent the genetic

and traumatic experiences. You can take precautionary actions to improved mental health or

prevent further mental disorders.

During my research I have found various treatments and therapies that can help heal

and recover people with mental health illnesses. One example of therapy is EMDR (Eye

Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing). This can help with people dealing with PTSD

and traumatic flashbacks. There are many more different types of therapies that can make

significant changes in people’s lives. I would like to do further research in specific therapies

and the direct effects they have on people. I also will do more research for what kinds of anti-

depressants work best and how they can make people’s lives better.
 Works Cited
“Chronic Illness & Mental Health.” National Institute of Mental Health, U.S. Department of

Health and Human Services, www.nimh.nih.gov/health/publications/chronic-illness

mental-health/index.shtml. Accessed 23 March 2020

Gotter, Ana. “What You Need to Know About EMDR Therapy.” Healthline, Healthline Media,

15 July 2019, https://www.healthline.com/health/emdr-therapy. Accessed 23 March

2020.

“Mental Disorders.” World Health Organization, World Health Organization,

www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/mental-disorders. Accessed 23 March 2020.

“Mental Illness.” Mayo Clinic, Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research, 8 June

2019, www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/mental-illness/diagnosis-treatment/drc-

20374974. Accessed 23 March 2020.

Morin, Amy. “The 5 Most Common Misconceptions About Mental Illness.” Psychology Today,

9 Nov. 2015, www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/what-mentally-strong-people-dont-

do/201511/the-5-most-common-misconceptions-about-mental.

“What Mental Health Statistics Can Tell Us.” U.S. News & World Report, U.S. News & World

Report, health.usnews.com/conditions/mental-health/articles/what-mental-health-

statistics-can-tell-us. Accessed 23 March 2020.

“NAMI.” NAMI, www.nami.org/learn-more/treatment/psychotherapy. Accessed 29 March 2020.