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Reporting on Mental Health
Reducing Misconceptions about Treatment
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The National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) defines recovery from mental health challenges as a process beginning with an accurate diagnosis and moving into successful management of the symptoms of the condition.
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Contrary to some misconceptions, one can live a gratifying life despite mental health challenges; it all depends on how successfully the disorder is managed.
Available services and support are the most important details to consider when reporting on mental health challenges. It provides greater insight into the subject of your story and gives you the opportunity to show your readers that no matter the diagnosis, there is always hope. Effective support tools and resources are key to achieving recovery and adding details regarding what mental health services are available in your community at low or no cost can encourage your readers to seek out the help they need for themselves or a loved one.
Consider these suggestions to promote awareness about mental health services in your stories:
- Think about how you can incorporate help-seeking behavior into your story by exploring what services are available and normally prescribed to treat the mental illness you are covering and if they were utilized.
- When discussing treatment or services in your stories, remember to promote it as an important step in maintaining wellness not something to be ashamed of.
- Most people do not seek out the support they need due to barriers such as unavailable transportation or a lack of awareness surrounding local services. In your reports concerning mental health challenges remember to include information about your local mental health services, which ones are low cost, and what public transportation is available to get to them.
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How common are mental health challenges?
Of Pennsylvania’s approximately 12.4 million residents, close to 448,000 adults live with serious mental illness and about 129,000 children live with serious mental health conditions.
Click here to read more!
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The Second Annual
Media & Mental Health Awards are coming up on
November 8th!
Don't forget to RSVP today and join us in celebrating excellence in
mental health reporting in SWPA!
Click here for more information.
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Looking for More?
Check out EIC's action strategy publication for reporting on mental health in Pittsburgh!
Picture This: Mental Health in Pittsburgh |
Services & Support
The types of services necessary to facilitate management and recovery from a mental health challenge depend on the symptoms the person is experiencing, the severity of the symptoms, and what works best for their individual situation. In many cases, a combination of available services works best.
Services may include:
- Medication—for example, antidepressant medications, mood-stabilizing medications, anti-anxiety medications, and antipsychotic medications.
- Psychotherapy—a process focused on helping one heal and learn more constructive ways to deal with the problems or issues within one’s life; for example, cognitive behavioral therapy, psychoanalysis, systemic therapy, and family therapy.
- Brain stimulation—sometimes used for depression and some other mental health disorders.
- Hospitalization and residential treatment programs—generally recommended when one can't care for oneself properly or when one is in immediate danger of harming oneself or someone else.
- Substance abuse treatment—substance abuse commonly occurs along with mental illness, which often interferes with treatment and worsens mental illness; substance abuse treatment is needed when/if one can't stop using drugs or alcohol on one’s own.
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EIC's FREE Technical Assistance Resource
to the Creative Community and Journalists!
To set up your own FREE First Draft Consultation with one of our experts contact Susan Brozek Scott at sbscott@eiconline.org or
412-486-2151.
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The 16th Annual PRISM
Awards Showcase in Pittsburgh featuring interviews with local experts premieres November 5th!
Check it out on PCTV Channel 21 and click here for the full airing schedule! |
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Visit Us Online!
www.eiconline.org/swpa
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In collaboration with
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