Famsa, clinic educate about mental health problems
There different mental health disorders.
The Family and Marriage Society of SA (Famsa) East Rand and Boksburg Clinic educated recovering addicts at House of Mercy about mental health illnesses on November 8.
Nomvuselelo Sithole, a Boksburg Clinic mental health social worker, said it is important for addicts to know there are various types of mental health illnesses, such as depression, bipolar, schizophrenia, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), anxiety disorder and substance-induced psychotic disorder.
“Most of these have different symptoms that people should pay attention to. Let’s take for instance depression. It is a mental disorder that is caused by severe stress, and stress is caused by tough situations that people find difficult to accept and comprehend.
“Symptoms of depression are severe headaches, body pains, diet changes, isolation and suicidal thoughts,” said Sithole.
She stressed that bipolar is different from depression because it affects a person’s feelings.
“A person who is bipolar can change from being a sweet person to being a maniac or from happy to sad in seconds. Schizophrenia causes a person to be delusional, to hallucinate and it affects thought patterns and is related to substance-induced psychotic disorder.”
According to Sithole, all mental health disorders can be managed and controlled with the right diagnoses.
The Boksburg Clinic has a multi-disciplinary committee that assists people with mental health problems.
Pamela Nthebe, a social worker at FAMSA, said they deal with many people suffering from mental health problems, which is why they visited House of Mercy to educate recovering addicts.
“From our experience, many people are diagnosed but not educated about their mental health disorder. Our aim is also to eradicate the stigmas surrounding mental health disorders,” said Nthebe.
Thabang Mqoqwa, a recovered addict, said he has learned a lot about the symptoms of mental health sicknesses.
“I know someone with a mental health disorder where I live in Duduza and now I’m going to refer her to the Boksburg Clinic because I know she will get help there,” said Mqoqwa.
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