Dr. Beth-Sarah Wright

Passionate advocate for authenticity in our lives and in our communities.

#3: Mental Illnesses do NOT discriminate!

You don’t have to be a specific age, or race, or gender to have a mental illness.  

It does not discriminate!

Having a mental illness is not a “white” thing, a “rich” thing, a “poor” thing or a “homeless” thing.  It does not affect any one population more than another.  I confess, I thought that having depression was relegated to “artists/poets/writers”;  I thought having a mental illness meant you were on the street, “homeless”, barefoot and talking to yourself;  I thought depression was for very wealthy folks who had the “luxury” of having a mental illness; I thought being depressed was more for women than men.

It wasn’t until I was admitted to a hospital to receive treatment where I met men, women; old, young; doctors, lawyers, nurses, bankers; asian, black, white, hispanic; purple, pink and green folk ALL suffering with some sort of a mental illness.  It wasn’t about where or how you grew up,  how much you money you had or didn’t have;  if you were religious or not; it is an illness, and it does NOT discriminate.

Some Fast Facts:

  • 1 in 4 adults (approx. 61.5 million Americans) experience mental illness in a given year.
  • Approx. 20 % of youth ages 13 to 18 experience severe mental disorders in a given year.
  • Approx. 60% of adults and almost 1/2 of youth ages 8 to 15 with a mental illness received no mental health services in the previous year.
  • African-American and Hispanic Americans used mental health services at about 1/2 the rate of whites in the past year and Asian Americans at about 1/3 the rate.
  • 1/2 of chronic mental illness begins by age 14; 3/4 by age 24.

NAMI- National Alliance on Mental Illness

Bless you!

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