DAY 13
You’ve Enabled One Person to Screen for Mental Health Conditions
Together with Mental Health America
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What is your positive impact today?
Today, you’ve enabled one person to access an online mental health test to screen for potential mental health conditions. This mental health screening is one of the quickest and easiest ways to determine whether someone is experiencing symptoms of a mental health condition. And if the results indicate potential symptoms of a mental illness, immediate next steps are recommended and encouraged, such as sharing the results with a friend or family member, or reaching out to a mental health provider (such as a doctor or therapist) for a full assessment and options for how to feel better.
This online screening is a starting point for the mental health journey that meets the person that you enabled to participate where they are, and help them focus on their mental health, not mental illness.
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Why is your impact important?
Mental health conditions, such as depression or anxiety, are real, common, and treatable. And recovery is possible. Data from over 21 million online mental health screenings shows that most screeners are teens or young adults, most people screen “positive”—their results show moderate to severe symptoms, and most “positive” screeners have never been diagnosed with a mental health condition.
Screeners report that what they want most are additional information about mental health; worksheets, tools, or apps they can use to monitor their own mental health; engagement with peers and others who understand what they are experiencing; and referrals to care, services, and supports.
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How are we achieving your impact together?
Our impactful partner for today is Mental Health America. They offer an online collection of free, confidential, and scientifically validated mental health screening tools (tests). And for each screening tool, they explain how it was developed, which populations it has been validated for, and under which conditions it may be reproduced (if any).
Since the launch of their online mental health screening tools in 2014, over 21 million screens have been taken—with over 15,000 on a daily basis. They have the largest mental health dataset ever collected from a help-seeking population.
More About Mental Health America
Mental Health America was founded in 1909 and is the nation’s leading national nonprofit dedicated to the promotion of mental health, well-being, and condition prevention. For over 115 years, their work has been informed, designed, and led by the lived experience of those most affected.
We would never tell someone with a broken leg that they should stop wallowing and get it together. We don’t consider taking medication for an ear infection something to be ashamed of. We shouldn’t treat mental health conditions any differently.
– Michelle Obama; American attorney and author who served as the first lady of the US
