Generalized Anxiety Disorder
WHAT IS IT?
Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) is an anxiety disorder
characterized by chronic anxiety, exaggerated worry, and tension. It
is diagnosed when someone spends at least 6 months worrying
excessively about everyday problems. Genes play a modest role in the
disorder.
DID YOU KNOW?
• GAD affects 6.8 million American adults in a given year.
• The disorder frequently begins in young adulthood.
• GAD is treatable. It is commonly treated with medication
and/or cognitive-behavioral therapy.
• GAD rarely occurs alone. It is usually accompanied by other
anxiety disorders, depression, and/or substance abuse.
• In general, anxiety disorders affect about 40 million American
adults each year.
SYMPTOMS:
Unrealistic or excessive
worry or fear
Exaggerated startle reactions
Sleep disturbances
Trembling
Ritualistic behaviors (e.g.
excessive hand-washing,
counting, etc.)
Muscles aches and tension
Irritability
Racing pulse
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Bipolar Disorder
WHAT IS IT?
Bipolar disorder, or manic-depressive illness, causes unusual shifts
in a person’s mood and ability to function. It is different from normal
ups and downs; moods may swing from intense elation (mania) to
severe sadness (major depression).
DID YOU KNOW?
• 5.7 million Americans live with bipolar disorder in a given year.
• 90% of individuals with bipolar disorder experience onset
before age 20.
• Bipolar disorder is a long-term illness that must be managed
throughout a person’s life.
• More than 2/3 of people with bipolar disorder have at least one
close relative with the disorder.
• There is help and hope. The disorder is treatable, often with
psychotherapy and medication.
SYMPTOMS:
Common symptoms of mania:
Restlessness
Excessively “high,”
euphoric moods
Extreme irritability
Poor concentration
Unrealistic beliefs in one’s
abilities and powers
Common symptoms of a
depression:
Lasting sad mood
Feelings of hopelessness
Loss of interest or pleasure
in activities
Fatigue and changes in sleep
habits
Suicidal thoughts
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ACTIVE MINDS WEBSITE:
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Active Minds is an organization devoted to raising mental health awareness on college
campuses. If you are interested in joining, contact info@activeminds.org
Depression
WHAT IS IT?
Depression and sadness are not the same. While feelings of
sadness will lessen with time, clinical depression can continue for
weeks, months, and even years.
DID YOU KNOW?
• 20.9 million Americans suffer from depression in a given
year.
• Depression may play a factor in two-thirds of all reported
suicides in the US.
• Depression often co-exists with other mental disorders such
as anxiety disorders, eating disorders, and/or substance
abuse.
• The disorder also often co-exists with physiological
disorders such as cancer, heart disease, stroke, diabetes,
and Parkinson’s disease.
• Depression is highly treatable.
SYMPTOMS:
Persistent sad mood for two
weeks or more
Feelings of hopelessness
Restlessness, change in
sleeping habits
Loss of interest in hobbies
Fatigue
Poor memory
Weight gain/loss
Persistent aches that do not
ease, even with treatment
Suicidal thoughts or attempts
CONFIDENTIAL SERVICES ARE AVAILABLE TO YOU AT (Fill in Your University)
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Anywhere USA, 01234
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ACTIVE MINDS WEBSITE:
www.activeminds.org
Active Minds is an organization devoted to raising mental health awareness on college
campuses. If you are interested in joining, contact info@activeminds.org
Eating Disorders
WHAT IS IT?
Eating disorders are marked by severe disturbances in eating
behavior, including extreme reduction of food intake, overeating, or
distress about body weight or shape. The main types of eating
disorders are anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, and binge-eating
disorder.
DID YOU KNOW?
• In a given year, 10 million female and 1 million male Americans
live with eating disorders.
• Eating disorders frequently develop during adolescence.
• 35% of “normal dieters” progress to pathological dieting. Of
those, 20-25% progress to partial or full-syndrome eating
disorders.
• For females ages 15-24 who suffer from anorexia nervosa, the
mortality rate due to the illness is 12 times higher than that of all
other causes of death.
• Only 33% of people with anorexia nervosa and 6% of people
with bulimia nervosa receive the mental health care they need.
PHYSICAL COMPLICATIONS?
Those that often accompany eating disorders include:
Heart conditions and mild
Muscular weakness
anemia
Dizziness and fainting
Cessation of menstruation
Low blood pressure
Dental, orthopedic, and
Thinning or loss of hair, brittle
gastrointestinal problems
nails and dry skin
CONFIDENTIAL SERVICES ARE AVAILABLE TO YOU AT (Fill in Your University)
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ACTIVE MINDS WEBSITE:
www.activeminds.org
Active Minds is an organization devoted to raising mental health awareness on college
campuses. If you are interested in joining, contact info@activeminds.org
Schizophrenia
WHAT IS IT?
People with schizophrenia experience illogical thought patterns, hear
internal voices, and may experience paranoia. This disorder is thought
to have a strong biological base, though environmental factors can
contribute to the disease.
DID YOU KNOW?
• Schizophrenia affects about 2.4 million Americans in a given
year.
• Symptoms usually emerge in men in their late teens and early
20s; they often emerge in women in their mid-20s to early 30s.
• Schizophrenia affects men and women equally and occurs
uniformly across all ethnic groups.
• Schizophrenia tends to run in families.
• People with schizophrenia are generally not violent.
• People with schizophrenia attempt suicide much more often than
the general population does. 10% die by suicide every year.
• Although there is no cure yet, effective medications and
psychological treatments have been developed.
SYMPTOMS:
Symptoms of schizophrenia fall into three categories:
Positive Symptoms
Decrease in the ability
Deficits in attention,
Hallucinations,
to express emotion
memory, and
delusions, thought
and find pleasure in
organization.
and motion disarray. everyday life.
Negative Symptoms
Cognitive Symptoms
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ACTIVE MINDS WEBSITE:
www.activeminds.org
Active Minds is an organization devoted to raising mental health awareness on college
campuses. If you are interested in joining, contact info@activeminds.org
Post Traumatic Stress Disorder
WHAT IS IT?
Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) can result from experiencing a
traumatic event. It is diagnosed after a person has experienced
symptoms for at least one month. However, symptoms may not be
apparent until months or years later. Sufferers have persistent
flashbacks of their ordeal. They also feel emotionally numb.
DID YOU KNOW?
• PTSD affects 7.7 million Americans in a give year.
• Women are more likely than men to develop PTSD for all types of
traumatic events, except sexual assault or abuse.
• Approximately 50% of all PTSD cases remit in one year.
• PTSD can occur at any age, including during childhood.
• There are effective treatments for PTSD, including
psychotherapy and medication.
• Ordinary events can trigger flashbacks of the trauma.
Anniversaries of the event are often very difficult.
SYMPTOMS:
Three main types of symptoms characterize post-traumatic stress
disorder:
1. Re-experiencing the trauma through intrusive memories of the
event, flashbacks, and nightmares.
2. Emotional numbness, avoidance of places, people, and activities
that are reminders of the trauma.
3. Having difficulty sleeping and concentrating, and being easily
irritated or angered.
CONFIDENTIAL SERVICES ARE AVAILABLE TO YOU AT (Fill in Your University)
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Anywhere USA, 01234
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ACTIVE MINDS WEBSITE:
www.activeminds.org
Active Minds is an organization devoted to raising mental health awareness on college
campuses. If you are interested in joining, contact info@activeminds.org
Famous People with Mental Illnesses
Many celebrities and other public figures have been candid about their experiences
with mental illness; some with the hope that their honesty will send this important
message to the public: If you suffer from mental illness, you are not alone. Mental
illness affects all types of people. The following people have experienced:
Clinical Depression
° Janet Jackson—singer
° Gwyneth Paltrow — actress
° Hugh Laurie—actor
° Elton John—musician
° Pete Wentz—musician
° Anthony Hopkins—actor
Bipolar Disorder
° Robin Williams—actor
° Jean-Claude van Damme—actor
° Rosemary Clooney—actress/singer
Eating Disorders
° Tracey Gold—actress
° Billy Bob Thornton—actor
° Sally Field—actress
° Meredith Vieira—reporter
Anxiety Disorders
° Heather Locklear—actress
° Leonardo DiCaprio—actor
° Cameron Diaz—actress
° Howard Stern—radio host
Attempted Suicide
° Halle Berry—actress
° Drew Barrymore—actress
° Elizabeth Taylor—actress
° Richard Prior—comedian
° Ricky Williams—professional football
player
Self-Injury
° Johnny Depp—actor
° Angelina Jolie—actress
° Christina Ricci—actress
° Fiona Apple—singer
° Shirley Manson—singer
Historical figures
° Abraham Lincoln—depression
° Princess Diana—bulimia nervosa,
borderline personality disorder, and
self-injury
° Leo Tolstoy—depression
° Theodore Roosevelt—bipolar
disorder
° Winston Churchill—bipolar disorder
° Edgar Allen Poe—bipolar disorder
° Ludwig von Beethoven—bipolar
disorder
Those lost to Suicide
° Kurt Cobain—musician
° Jimi Hendrix—musician
° Marilyn Monroe—actress
° Dorothy Dandridge—actress
° Diane Arbus—photographer
° Anne Sexton—poet
° Sylvia Plath—poet and author
° Virginia Woolf—author
° Ernest Hemingway—author
° Sigmund Freud founder of
CONFIDENTIAL SERVICES ARE AVAILABLE TO YOU AT (Fill in Your University)
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Anywhere USA, 01234
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ACTIVE MINDS WEBSITE:
www.activeminds.org
Active Minds is an organization devoted to raising mental health awareness on college
campuses. If you are interested in joining, contact info@activeminds.org