1 in 5 people in Mass suffer from a mental health issue

BOSTON — Allison Raymond suffers from depression. She was bullied through high school and her depression deepened.

“I have good days and I have bad days and occasionally I have manic episodes,” said Allison Raymond, from Leominster.

She spiraled into manic bipolar disorder and anxiety disorder. The pain so great she tried to stop it the only way she knew how.

"I had just hit my low point and decided to end my own life. I decided to take a bottle of Lorazapan and aspirin. My husband found me on the bathroom floor,” she said.

Allison is not alone. In fact, one in five people in Massachusetts suffer from a mental illness, according to the National Alliance on Mental Illness.

More people in Massachusetts die from suicide, than homicide, says NAMI.

“It’s huge it’s over 500 people a year who die from suicides. People who attempt suicide or die by suicide 90 percent of those people have a mental health issues,” according Laurie Martinelli of the National Alliance on Mental Illness.

Mental health issues are characterized most commonly as depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder and even forms of schizophrenia.

Martinelli said the most people never get help.

"It's very common but it’s a hush hush secret even in the best work places people do not feel comfortable talking about their own depression or their mental health issues.”

Erasing the Stigma

NAMI, along with help from Congressman Joe Kennedy, is determined to take the stigma away saying.

"We have to shift the way we think about mental illness,” said Kennedy. "We would never wait for somebody that had a physical illness say cancer, wait till you had stage 4 cancer and say ok now you can get treatment - why are we waiting for folks suffering from mental illness?"

Kennedy has authored a bill to re-allocate finances that will help everyone have affordable access to care, before it's too late.

"If we do make that investment there’s no doubt that over time we're going to see a huge savings on the back end which not only means its fiscally responsible, but morally it’s just the right thing to do,” he said.

After hitting rock bottom, Allison did get help.

She credits a combination of therapy, medication, her husband and the team at NAMI.

She hopes more people suffering in silence will ask for help and asks the rest of us to simply listen.

"People don't understand really when you're reaching out to them and you’re saying I'm feeling down that it’s a cry for help," she said.

May is mental health awareness month. You can join a team of us from FOX25 at the NAMI Mass Walk for Mental Health Awareness this Saturday at Artesani Park.

Cox Media Group