Mental health disorders are significant health conditions impacting a person’s cognition, emotional regulation, or behavior. These conditions are not just temporary feelings; they are clinically significant disturbances that can cause distress or impair daily functioning. Understanding the list of mental health diagnoses is crucial for individuals seeking help, their families, and communities to foster support and reduce stigma.
In 2019, it was estimated that 1 in 8 people globally, approximately 970 million individuals, lived with a mental disorder. Anxiety and depressive disorders were the most prevalent. The COVID-19 pandemic further exacerbated this, causing a significant rise in anxiety and depressive disorders in 2020, with estimates showing increases of 26% and 28% respectively within a single year. Despite the availability of effective treatments, a large portion of individuals with mental disorders lack access to adequate care. Furthermore, stigma and discrimination remain significant barriers for many.
This article provides an overview of different mental health diagnoses, drawing from the International Classification of Diseases 11th Revision (ICD-11), to offer a clearer understanding of these conditions.
Anxiety Disorders
Anxiety disorders are characterized by excessive fear, worry, and related behavioral disturbances. In 2019, 301 million people worldwide experienced an anxiety disorder, including 58 million children and adolescents. These disorders go beyond typical day-to-day worries, causing significant distress and impairment. Different types of anxiety disorders include:
- Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD): Persistent and excessive worry about various topics, events, or activities.
- Panic Disorder: Recurrent unexpected panic attacks, which are sudden periods of intense fear that can include physical symptoms like heart palpitations, shortness of breath, and dizziness.
- Social Anxiety Disorder (Social Phobia): Intense fear of social situations where one might be scrutinized by others.
- Separation Anxiety Disorder: Excessive fear or anxiety about separation from attachment figures.
Effective psychological treatments are available for anxiety disorders, and in some cases, medication may also be recommended depending on the individual’s age and the severity of the disorder.
Depressive Disorders
Depression is more than just temporary sadness. In 2019, 280 million people globally, including 23 million children and adolescents, were living with depression. It is characterized by persistent sadness or a loss of interest in activities, lasting for at least two weeks. Symptoms of depression can include:
- Persistent depressed mood, feelings of sadness, emptiness, or irritability.
- Loss of interest or pleasure in usual activities.
- Changes in appetite or weight.
- Sleep disturbances (insomnia or hypersomnia).
- Fatigue or loss of energy.
- Feelings of worthlessness or excessive guilt.
- Difficulty concentrating, indecisiveness.
- Recurrent thoughts of death or suicide.
Depression significantly increases the risk of suicide. However, effective psychological treatments and medication options are available to help individuals manage and recover from depression.
Bipolar Disorder
Bipolar disorder is characterized by significant shifts in mood, energy, activity levels, and the ability to carry out day-to-day tasks. In 2019, approximately 40 million people experienced bipolar disorder. It involves experiencing both depressive and manic episodes.
- Depressive Episodes: Similar to major depression, these episodes involve persistent sadness, loss of interest, and other depressive symptoms.
- Manic Episodes: These are periods of elevated mood, increased energy, and activity. Manic symptoms can include:
- Euphoria or irritability.
- Increased talkativeness.
- Racing thoughts.
- Inflated self-esteem.
- Decreased need for sleep.
- Distractibility.
- Impulsive and reckless behavior.
Individuals with bipolar disorder are at a higher risk of suicide. Treatment approaches include psychoeducation, stress reduction, social support enhancement, and medication to stabilize mood.
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) can develop after exposure to a terrifying event or ordeal in which grave physical harm occurred or was threatened. PTSD is characterized by:
- Re-experiencing Symptoms: Intrusive thoughts, flashbacks, and nightmares related to the traumatic event.
- Avoidance Symptoms: Avoiding reminders of the trauma, including places, people, thoughts, or feelings.
- Hyperarousal Symptoms: Persistent heightened startle response, feeling constantly on edge, difficulty sleeping.
- Negative Cognition and Mood Symptoms: Negative thoughts about oneself or the world, feeling detached from others, inability to experience positive emotions.
These symptoms must persist for more than a month and cause significant distress or functional impairment to be diagnosed as PTSD. Effective psychological treatments are available to help individuals process and recover from trauma.
Schizophrenia Spectrum and Other Psychotic Disorders
Schizophrenia is a chronic brain disorder that affects a person’s ability to think, feel, and behave clearly. Globally, schizophrenia affects approximately 24 million people, or 1 in 300. Symptoms of schizophrenia can vary but often include:
- Delusions: False beliefs not based in reality.
- Hallucinations: Experiencing sensations that are not real, such as hearing voices or seeing things that are not there.
- Disorganized Thinking (Speech): Confused or illogical thinking and speech.
- Abnormal Motor Behavior: Ranges from childlike “silliness” to unpredictable agitation.
- Negative Symptoms: Reduced ability to experience pleasure, flattened affect, reduced speaking.
Schizophrenia can significantly impact life expectancy, reducing it by 10-20 years. Treatment involves medication, psychoeducation, family support, and psychosocial rehabilitation to manage symptoms and improve quality of life.
Eating Disorders
Eating disorders are characterized by persistent disturbances of eating or eating-related behavior that results in altered consumption or absorption of food and that significantly impairs physical health or psychosocial functioning. In 2019, 14 million people experienced eating disorders, including almost 3 million children and adolescents. Common eating disorders include:
- Anorexia Nervosa: Characterized by restriction of energy intake leading to significantly low body weight, intense fear of gaining weight, and distorted body image.
- Bulimia Nervosa: Characterized by recurrent episodes of binge eating followed by compensatory behaviors like self-induced vomiting, misuse of laxatives, excessive exercise, or fasting.
- Binge Eating Disorder: Characterized by recurrent episodes of eating large quantities of food (binge eating) with a sense of loss of control, without compensatory behaviors.
Eating disorders can lead to severe health complications and even premature death. Effective treatments include family-based therapy, cognitive behavioral therapy, and nutritional counseling.
Disruptive, Impulse-Control and Conduct Disorders
Disruptive, impulse-control and conduct disorders involve problems in the self-control of emotions and behaviors. 40 million people, including children and adolescents, were living with conduct-dissocial disorder in 2019. These disorders include:
- Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD): A pattern of angry/irritable mood, argumentative/defiant behavior, or vindictiveness.
- Conduct Disorder: A repetitive and persistent pattern of behavior in which the basic rights of others or major age-appropriate societal norms or rules are violated.
These disorders often begin in childhood or adolescence. Treatment typically involves psychological interventions, family therapy, and social skills training, often involving parents, caregivers, and teachers.
Neurodevelopmental Disorders
Neurodevelopmental disorders are a group of conditions with onset in the developmental period. These disorders typically manifest early in development, often before the child enters grade school, and are characterized by developmental deficits that produce impairments of personal, social, academic, or occupational functioning. They include:
- Intellectual Disability (Intellectual Developmental Disorder): Characterized by deficits in intellectual and adaptive functioning, impacting conceptual, social, and practical skills.
- Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD): Characterized by persistent deficits in social communication and social interaction and restricted, repetitive patterns of behavior, interests, or activities.
- Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD): Characterized by a persistent pattern of inattention and/or hyperactivity-impulsivity that interferes with functioning or development.
Treatment approaches for neurodevelopmental disorders are varied and can include psychosocial interventions, behavioral therapies, occupational therapy, speech therapy, and medication, depending on the specific diagnosis and individual needs.
Risk Factors and the Importance of Support
Mental disorders are complex and can be influenced by a combination of individual, family, community, and structural factors. While anyone can develop a mental health condition, adverse experiences such as poverty, violence, disability, and inequality increase the risk. Protective factors, such as emotional skills and genetic resilience, also play a role.
It’s crucial to recognize that mental health support is essential. Many health systems are under-resourced, and a significant treatment gap exists worldwide. Beyond professional care, social support from family, friends, and community is vital for individuals with mental disorders. This includes support in relationships, education, employment, and social participation.
Understanding the list of mental health diagnoses is a crucial step towards reducing stigma, promoting early intervention, and ensuring that individuals receive the support and treatment they need to live fulfilling lives. The WHO’s Comprehensive Mental Health Action Plan and Mental Health Gap Action Programme (mhGAP) are critical initiatives working to improve mental health care globally.
References
(1) Institute of Health Metrics and Evaluation. Global Health Data Exchange (GHDx), (https://vizhub.healthdata.org/gbd-results/, accessed 14 May 2022).
(2) Mental Health and COVID-19: Early evidence of the pandemic’s impact. Geneva: World Health Organization; 2022.
(3) Charlson, F., van Ommeren, M., Flaxman, A., Cornett, J., Whiteford, H., & Saxena, S. New WHO prevalence estimates of mental disorders in conflict settings: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Lancet. 2019;394,240–248.
(4) Laursen TM, Nordentoft M, Mortensen PB. Excess early mortality in schizophrenia. Annual Review of Clinical Psychology, 2014;10,425-438.
(5) Mental health atlas 2020. Geneva: World Health Organization; 2021
(6) Moitra M, Santomauro D, Collins PY, Vos T, Whiteford H, Saxena S, et al. The global gap in treatment coverage for major depressive disorder in 84 countries from 2000–2019: a systematic review and Bayesian meta-regression analysis. PLoS Med. 2022;19(2):e1003901. doi:10.1371/journal.pmed.1003901.
