Mental Illness Often Hidden From Friends

LONDON (Reuters Health) - Many people may like to lend a hand to a friend with a mental health problem, but one in four people only find out that a friend has mental illness when they are admitted to the hospital, according to survey results released Tuesday.

The survey showed that for 5% of people, the first sign of a friend's metal health problems is a suicide attempt. This finding shows that the stigma of mental illness stops people from getting the support they need, according to the Mental Health Foundation, a UK-based charity working to improve services for those with mental illness or learning disabilities.

As many as one in four people will suffer from some form of mental illness--including depression, anxiety disorder or other more serious illness--in the course of a year.

``We know that being accepted by your friends is one of the most important positive factors for anybody experiencing mental health problems,'' said Ruth Lesirge, chief executive, Mental Health Foundation, ``but we all still need to do more to ensure that people feel able to talk to their friends when they first need support.''

The charity is calling for information about mental health to be part of the school curriculum from an early age, and for the National Carers Strategy, which outlines the support that should be made to those providing care for long term illnesses, to recognize the role of friends as ``informal carers.''

Although 75% of survey respondents said they received support from their network of friends, 34% expressed hesitation about talking to those friends about their illness. In fact, only 28% said they could tell most of their friends. The survey of 543 people included some with mental illness as well as friends of people with mental health problems.

Nearly four in 10 with mental illness thought friends might not understand, did not want to be seen as a burden, or thought their friends would be frightened because of the stigma associated with their condition.

One person wrote, ``I avoid making friends because of my illness. I also think some friends from school have not kept in touch because they heard through the grapevine that I had mental problems.''

The survey was released to mark Mental Health Action Week, which takes place April 16-22.

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