Mental Illness Awareness Week 10/4 - 10/09

Mental Illness Awareness Week: What You Should Know, Including PBS Broadcasts, Oct. 4-10

Mental Illness Awareness Week (MIAW) is Oct. 4-10, 2009 and as part of its observance, the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) is calling attention to a program now airing on PBS, Minds on the Edge: Facing Mental Illness.

Observed annually the first full week in October, Congress established MIAW as a time to raise public awareness of serious mental illnesses such as major depression, bipolar disorder and schizophrenia. Other diagnoses include post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and anxiety disorders, including obsessive-compulsive disorder and borderline personality disorder.

* About 60 million Americans experience mental health problems in any given year. One in 17 lives with the most serious conditions. Less than one-third get treatment.
* One-half of all lifetime cases begin by age 14, but 10 or more years may pass between onset of symptoms and getting help.

“The first step in combating mental illness is education,” said NAMI Executive Director Michael J. Fitzpatrick.

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