Is Mental Illness a Disease?

When someone is suffering from a physical illness, they’re rarely met with criticism or skepticism regarding the validity of their illness.

Unfortunately, this is often not the case for those suffering from mental illnesses. With no physical signs to point to, it can be hard to recognize the severity of mental illness and its impact on both the body and mind.

Mental health conditions are commonly misunderstood, and many question if they’re legitimate diseases or not. To uncover the truth on whether or not mental illness is a disease, let’s take a look at how it’s classified by medical professionals.

Is Mental Illness a Chronic Disease?

When most people think of chronic diseases, they think of heart disease, diabetes, or cancer. Mental illnesses affect the body in a different way, and their symptoms are harder to recognize. This can make it difficult to determine if they’re also chronic diseases.

Chronic disease is often defined as a long-lasting condition that requires ongoing medical support. Most chronic diseases can be treated but not cured, and they usually worsen over time without the appropriate treatments.

Chronic diseases aren’t limited to physical diseases. Most mental health conditions fit the criteria, and they’re also considered to be chronic diseases.

Image: a person sitting, leaning against a rock on a stone sidewalk. They're elbows are on their knees, arms straight out. Their head is hanging down. Text: most mental health conditions fit the criteria of a chronic disease.

Why Mental Illness Is a Disease

Mental illnesses aren’t just feelings that someone can simply get over. This is a common stigma that perpetuates the uncertainty on whether or not mental illnesses are considered diseases. So, what exactly is a disease, and why are mental illnesses considered diseases?

Diseases are medical conditions that have specific causes, signs, and symptoms. They affect the function or structure of the body, and usually require medical treatment for relief. This means that just like physical diseases, mental illnesses are considered diseases too.

Read our related article to learn about crippling anxiety symptoms and treatments.

Disease Model of Mental Illness

Disease models, or medical models, are used by medical professionals to explain where a medical condition came from and how it should be treated. The disease model of mental illness specifically addresses the biological factors that contribute to mental health disorders, and it identifies treatments that counteract these biological factors.

For example, depression is often linked to decreased serotonin, and ADHD is often linked to dopamine imbalances. Anxiety can be linked to neurotransmitter imbalances, but it can also be caused by a prolonged flight or fight response. To counteract these imbalances, mental health professionals will often prescribe medications that can give the brain what it needs to function properly.

Image: a woman in a cafe, viewed from outside, which is reflected in the glass. Her elbow is resting on a table, head in hand. Text: mental health disorders often have a physiological cause

Read our full guides on anxiety and depression to learn more about the biological factors into these mental health disorders.

Although the disease model of mental illness accounts for biological and physiological factors, it doesn’t account for other factors that are known to impact mental health. Environmental and societal factors play a large role in mental illnesses, and these factors usually can’t be treated with medication alone.

Disease Model of Addiction

The disease model of addiction states that addiction is a chronic disease that’s rooted in a variety of biological and environmental factors. Addiction requires ongoing treatment and support, and it can’t be overcome with willpower alone.

Mental illness and addiction share several similarities, and they’re often perceived in a similar light. In fact, the widely accepted approach to addiction treatment is to address the underlying mental health issues that make someone more susceptible to substance use. Despite being legitimate diseases, they’re both widely misunderstood and frequently stigmatized.

Read our related guide for a full answer to the question: Is Addiction a Disease?

How Is Mental Illness Treated?

Mental illness can be attributed to a variety of factors, and each contributing factor is unique to the individual. To effectively treat an individual’s mental illness, it often involves a combination of medication and therapy.

image: a sepia-toned photo of a man on a jog down a dirty road through a meadow in the fall. Text: Like a physical disease, mental health issues can often be treated with the help of medications and lifestyle changes.

Treating Mental Illness With Medication

To treat the physiological factors of mental illness, like imbalanced neurotransmitters, most mental health professionals will prescribe medications. Antidepressants, antianxiety medications, and antipsychotics help balance the brain by opening or closing neurotransmitter receptors, allowing the correct amount of different neurochemicals to send messages.

Although medications can provide physical symptom relief, it usually doesn’t provide relief from the other factors that impact someone’s mental health, such as environment and personal circumstances.

Read our related article to discover how long it takes for antidepressants to work.

Treating Mental Illness With Therapy

In addition to medications, most mental health experts recommend specific therapy modalities. Therapy is an equally important treatment for mental illnesses, as it helps address the environmental and societal factors that impact someone’s mental health.

Counseling can also help a person learn what they can do on their own to help with their mental health issues. For example, positive self-talk has been proven to quell depression symptoms, and meditation can help with the physical causes of anxious feelings.

Learn how mindful practices such as sound baths can reduce physical causes and symptoms of anxiety.

When medication is paired with therapy, it can provide comprehensive relief for a full range of symptoms.

The Residential Treatment Program at Sequoia Behavioral Health provides an ideal environment for achieving mental wellness, whether you’re struggling with addiction or a mental health condition.

No image. Text: therapy is an equally important treatment for mental illnesses, as it helps address the environmental and societal factors that impact someone's mental health

Sequoia Behavioral Health – Helping You Achieve Mental Wellness

At Sequoia Behavioral Health, our team of mental health professionals works closely with you to identify your needs and develop a personalized treatment plan. From medication management to effective therapy techniques, we provide the treatments you need to overcome your mental illness and achieve mental wellness.

If you or a loved one is struggling with a mental illness, reach out to our mental health experts today.