It may surprise you to learn how many people have a mental illness. In Cuyahoga County alone, more than a quarter of a million people have a mental illness. That means it's likely someone you know -- a classmate, friend, family member or co-worker - has a mental illness. Mental illness does not discriminate based on race, gender, age, income or residence. It touches everyone from children to college students to older adults and impacts their families, friends and neighbors.
Treatment works and people recover. Consider the facts:
- Suicide is the third leading cause of death in people between the ages of 15 and 24. More teenagers and young adults die from suicide than from cancer, heart disease, AIDS, stroke, pneumonia, influenza and chronic lung disease COMBINED.
- Fifteen percent of college students are clinically depressed. About one in five students report that they sought personal counseling since entering college.
If you or someone you know has a mental illness and you need information about services, contact the Baldwin Wallace College Health and Counseling Services (207 Beech Street) at 440-826-2180 or call the 24 hour suicide/mental health crisis, information and referral line at 216-623-6888. If you would like to learn more about mental health, the impact of untreated mental illness and how you can make our families and communities stronger, please visit the Mental Health Advocacy Coalition's Web site, www.mentalhealthadvocacy.org.
275 Eastland Rd.