Mental Illness Awareness Week (October 2-8, 2011) focuses public attention on mental illnesses, underline causes, new medical advances, and the availability of treatments. Mental illnesses are medical illnesses. One in four adults experiences a mental health problem in any given year. One in 17 lives with serious, chronic illnesses.

On average, people living with serious mental illness live 25 years less than the rest of the population. One reason is that less than one-third of adults and less than one-half of children with a diagnosed illness receive treatment.

The U.S. Surgeon General has reported that stigma is a major barrier to people seeking help when they need it. The more people know, the better they can help themselves or help their loved ones get the help and support they need.

When mental health care isn’t available in a community, the results often are lost jobs and careers, broken families, more homelessness, more welfare and much more expensive costs for hospital emergency rooms, nursing homes, schools, police and even courts, jails and prisons.

In Polk County there are numerous agencies that offer mental health services. To find a listing of those services go to mentalhealthpolk.org.

Learn more about mental illness support, education and advocacy at www.nami.org