Nonprofit Profile | When Will We Realize That Better Mental Health Equals Better Economic Health?

Nobody wears a ribbon to raise awareness about depression.

There are no 5Ks for bipolar disorder.

A-list actors aren’t participating in suicide-prevention telethons.

May is Mental Health Awareness Month, and while there are a wealth of nonprofits devoted to assisting those with mental illnesses, they have, for the most part, remained in the second tier of health advocacy groups. There is still considerable public doubt that those with mental troubles are, in fact, ill — too many people still think these sufferers should just will themselves into feeling better. Never mind that medical science has done so much to explore the biochemical aspect of mental health; insurance companies still don’t cover therapy to the degree they ought to, and government and the private sector have failed to keep up with what the evidence shows. Schizophrenia is just as much an illness as cancer. We need to recognize that and begin dealing with it in the same way.

Organizations such as the American Psychological Association and the American Psychiatric Association have done terrific work in beginning the conversation. I’d like to see them reach out even more to legislators and major companies — not simply the pharmaceutical manufacturers, which are producing some amazing medicines, but to the country’s leading corporate voices, to partner with them in recognizing the value of mental health and how, with appropriate treatment, people can regain their emotional equilibrium and return to contributing to their organizations, and to the country at large.

Mental illness may be all in the victim’s head; that doesn’t mean it’s still not an illness. It’s time for us to join the 21st century and realize this. | 501(c)