
Seeking mental health treatment is one of the most courageous and empowering decisions a person can make.
It’s essential to remember that everyone faces challenges, and reaching out for help is a sign of strength, not weakness. Mental health struggles are just as important and valid as physical health issues, and there’s absolutely no shame in seeking support to improve your well-being. By taking the step to focus on your mental health, you’re investing in yourself and your future. You deserve to feel better, and seeking treatment is a powerful way to take control of your life and move towards a brighter, healthier future. You are not alone in this recovery journey!
Understanding Mental Health Issues
Did you know?
Historically, mental health conditions have not received the same attention and care as medical conditions. The Affordable Care Act (2010) significantly increased access to mental health and substance use coverage through insurance policies, improving access to care. However, stigma, fear, and misunderstanding about mental health issues persist. There is still much work to be done to reduce stigma and ensuring access to care in our community.
- Nearly 1 in 5 American adults will have a diagnosable mental health condition in any given year. This means that millions of people are affected by mental health issues, yet many do not receive the treatment they need
- Despite the high prevalence of mental health conditions, only about half of U.S. adults with any mental illness receive treatment.
- Mental health conditions can significantly impact physical health. For example, individuals with serious mental illness are at a higher risk for chronic physical conditions such as heart disease, diabetes, and respiratory disorders.
- Mental health conditions contribute to a substantial economic burden. In 2020, the economic cost of mental illness in the U.S. was estimated to be over $300 billion annually, including direct costs of care and lost productivity
The Symptoms of Mental Health Issues

There are many signs and symptoms that may indicate you are dealing with a mental health issue, and they may even look different from person to person! It’s important that you reach out to a mental health professional if you believe you are experiencing any of these symptoms.
Emotional Symptoms
- Persistent Sadness or Depression: Feeling down, hopeless, or empty an extended period of time
- Excessive Worry or Anxiety: Constantly feeling anxious, fearful, or stressed.
- Mood Swings: Experiencing extreme highs and lows in mood, which can impact daily life.
- Irritability or Anger: Feeling unusually irritable, on edge, or having difficulty controlling anger.
- Feelings of Guilt or Worthlessness: Constantly feeling helpless, ashamed, excessive guilt.
Cognitive Symptoms
- Difficulty Concentrating: Struggling to focus, remember things, or make decisions.
- Racing Thoughts: Experiencing rapid or intrusive thoughts that are hard to control, feeling like you cannot shut off your brain.
- Negative Thinking: Frequently having pessimistic or self-critical thoughts.
Behavioral Symptoms
- Withdrawal from Social Activities: Avoiding friends, family, or social situations.
- Changes in Sleep Patterns: Sleeping too much or too little or experiencing insomnia.
- Changes in Appetite: Eating significantly more or less than usual, leading to significant weight changes.
- Substance Abuse: Turning to drugs or alcohol to cope with emotions.
- Neglecting Responsibilities: Failing to meet obligations at work, school, or home.
Physical Symptoms
- Fatigue: Feeling constantly tired or lacking energy.
- Physical Pain: Experiencing unexplained aches, pains, or other physical symptoms.
- Changes in Appearance: Neglecting personal hygiene or appearance. Not showering or brushing your teeth, not getting dressed for an extended period of time.
What are the Risk Factors?
It may be tempting to ignore your symptoms or push treatment off until later, but this can lead to some potentially harmful and long-lasting side effects.
Emotional and Psychological Impact
- Worsening Symptoms: Untreated mental health issues often escalate, leading to more severe emotional distress and suffering, and in some cases, psychiatric hospitalization.
- Chronic Stress: Prolonged stress can contribute to anxiety disorders, depression, and other mental health conditions.
- Reduced Quality of Life: Persistent mental health challenges can diminish overall life satisfaction and happiness.
Physical Health Consequences
- Health Complications: Chronic stress and untreated mental health issues can lead to physical health problems such as cardiovascular diseases, gastrointestinal issues, and weakened immune function.
- Substance Abuse: Some individuals may turn to drugs or alcohol as a coping mechanism, leading to addiction and further health complications.
Social and Occupational Impact
- Strained Relationships: Untreated mental health issues can affect personal and professional relationships, leading to conflicts and social isolation.
- Decreased Productivity: Mental health struggles can impair cognitive function, concentration, and productivity, affecting academic and work performance.
- Employment Issues: Ongoing mental health problems may lead to job instability, absenteeism, or unemployment.
Financial Burden
- Increased Costs: Ignoring mental health issues can result in higher medical expenses due to the need for emergency care or treatment of physical health complications.
Safety Risks
- Self-Harm and Suicide: In severe cases, untreated mental health conditions can lead to self-harm or suicidal thoughts and behaviors. Seeking help is crucial to prevent such outcomes. Psychiatric hospitals provide short-term stabilization for people who are experiencing a mental health crisis.
If you, or someone you know is experiencing suicidal thoughts,
please call 9-1-1 immediately and seek medical attention.
What is the Treatment?

There are several effective treatments for mental health conditions, often tailored to the individual’s needs. These treatments can be used individually or in combination, depending on the person’s needs.
Here are some common types of treatment:
Psychotherapy (Talk Therapy)
- Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT): You have an automatic thought. That thought produces an emotion. As humans, our emotions can affect how we act. Once you recognize the thought and emotion associated with that thought, you usually have several choices to make, which can lead to consequences of your behavior. CBT aims to change the thought(s) to more productive and more helpful consequences.
- Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT): Combines CBT with mindfulness techniques and emotional regulation, often used for borderline personality disorder.
- Psychodynamic Therapy: Explores unconscious thoughts and emotions to understand and resolve psychological conflicts. This is a long-term therapy, typically working with the same psychodynamically trained therapist for several years or longer.
- Interpersonal Therapy (IPT): Focuses on improving interpersonal relationships and social functioning.
Medication Management
- Antidepressants: Used to treat depression and other mood disorders.
- Anti-Anxiety Medications: Helps manage anxiety disorders and panic attacks.
- Antipsychotics: Used to treat conditions like schizophrenia and bipolar disorder.
- Mood Stabilizers: Often prescribed for bipolar disorder to help balance mood swings.
Lifestyle and Self-Care
- Exercise: Regular physical activity can improve mood and reduce symptoms of depression and anxiety.
- Healthy Diet: Proper nutrition can positively impact mental health.
- Sleep Hygiene: Good sleep practices can help improve overall mental well-being.
- Mindfulness and Meditation: Techniques to help reduce stress and promote mental clarity.
Support Groups
- Peer Support: Groups of individuals with similar experiences can provide mutual support and understanding. The National Alliance on Mental Illness (www.nami.org) is one of the leading organizations in the country that offers free peer support groups.
- 12-Step Programs: Structured support groups for addiction recovery, such as Alcoholics Anonymous (AA), Narcotics Anonymous (NA), Al-Anon (for family members who have a loved one with any addiction, Co-dependents Anonymous (CODA), Sex Addicts Anonymous (SAA), and Sex and Love Addicts Anonymous (SLAA)
Alternative and Complementary Therapies
- Psychodrama: an experiential group therapy that has people re-enact real-life situations through role-playing, storytelling, and dramatic self-presentation.
- Art and Music Therapy: Creative therapies to help express emotions and reduce stress.
- Equine Assisted Therapy: A process that uses horses to help people meet their physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual health goals. Teaches emotion regulation, self-confidence, and responsibility, while helping reduce symptoms of depression, anxiety, or trauma.
- Yoga and Tai Chi: Mind-body practices that promote relaxation and stress reduction.
Hospitalization and Intensive Treatment
Psychiatric Hospitalization:
This type of treatment provides 24/7 care in a locked psychiatric unit, usually attached to a medical hospital. During the admission process, people are evaluated by a mental health professional and a psychiatric professional to determine the best course of treatment. Psychiatric medication may be prescribed during the stay to help with mental health stabilization.
People can admit to the unit on a voluntary basis, if they are feeling unsafe or are experiencing suicidal thoughts or have plans to self-harm or attempt suicide. Staying in a psychiatric hospital usually lasts 3-7 days, depending on the severity of symptoms that a person is experiencing.
People can also be admitted to the unit on an involuntary basis. This happens when a person is an immediate danger to themselves or someone else. A friend or family member can call 9-1-1 and ask for help from the local police department to help transport the person to the closest psychiatric hospital. This is a legal process and requires paperwork to be filled out by a friend or family member to begin the process of involuntary commitment. People on an involuntary commitment are kept at the hospital for a minimum of 72 hours until they meet with a mental health professional to determine the next course of treatment.
Partial Hospitalization Programs (PHP):
An intensive outpatient program that provides structured treatment for up to six hours during the day up to five days per week.
Intensive Outpatient Programs (IOP):
An intensive outpatient program that provides structured treatment for up to three hours during the day up to four days per week.
At Desert Star we combine many of the treatments above including, Partial Hospitalization, Intensive Outpatient, Talk Therapy, Medication Management, Art Therapy, Support Groups, lifestyle, and selfcare to help you on your journey to recovery. We invite you to explore each of the pages in our Mental Health section to familiarize yourself with what we treat and how we may be best suited to your needs.
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Get the help you need without putting your outside commitments on hold! We individualize treatment for every client and can combine groups from different programs to suit your unique needs. We offer varying levels of structure and support, from partial hospitalization to intensive outpatient to once-weekly outpatient groups.