The Growing Mental Health Crisis And How Mental Health Retreats In The UK Might Help

Barely a week goes past when there isn’t an outcry about the ever-growing levels of mental health issues in the UK, especially in young people, and the lack of services available. In this article, we will put this in perspective by looking at some of the current statistics, and also discuss the role mental health retreats in the UK can play in reducing the crisis.

How Widespread Are Mental Health Issues In The UK?

According to national mental charity MIND:

One in every four people in England will suffer from a mental health problem of some kind each year.

One in every six adults reports having a common mental health problem (such as depression or anxiety) at some point during any given week.

However, these figures relate to surveys in 2014 and it is very apparent that figures are rising dramatically. It is thought, for example, that the number of people who self-harm or have suicidal thoughts is rising faster than the number than of people recorded as having mental health problems.

Even more worrying perhaps is data from the Mental Health Foundation that suggests:

10% of children and young people aged 5 to 16 have a clinically diagnosable mental health problem but only 70% of those have not had appropriate early-stage interventions.

Specific diagnoses

In England, during any given week:

• Eight out of 100 people suffer from depression and anxiety.
• Six out of 100 people suffer from a generalized anxiety disorder (GAD).
• Four out of every 100 people suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
• Three out of 100 people suffer from depression.
• Two out of every 100 people suffer from phobias.
• Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) affects one out of every 100 individuals.
• Panic disorder affects less than one in every 100 individuals.

The diagnosis of a person can change multiple times throughout their lives. The number of persons who will be diagnosed with a complicated ailment throughout their lives, or in any particular year, is one way to assess it:

• Antisocial personality disorder (ASPD) affects three out of every 100 people (in their lifetime)
• 2 out of every 100 people suffer from a borderline personality disorder (BPD) (in their lifetime)
• Bipolar disorder affects 2 out of every 100 persons (in their lifetime)
• Less than 1 in 100 people suffer from psychotic illnesses (includes schizophrenia) in any given year

However, estimations for these diagnoses can be considerably different. Personality disorders and schizophrenia, for example, are divisive diagnoses. These designations have the potential to be dehumanizing. Many individuals believe they should be avoided at all costs.

According to reports from both Wales and England:

• Only about 1 in every 8 adults with a mental health issue is currently receiving treatment.
• Psychiatric medication is the most popular method of treatment.

Suicidal Ideation And Self-Injury Due To Mental Health Problems In The UK

Suicidal ideation and self-harm aren’t considered mental illnesses. They are, nevertheless, linked to mental health. For a person’s lifespan, they will:

• Suicidal ideation affects one out of every five persons.
• Self-harm affects one out of every fourteen persons.
• One in every fifteen people attempts

Females are more likely than men to develop suicidal ideation and attempt suicide. Men, on the other hand, are three times more likely than women to commit suicide.

Mental Health Issues On The Rise In The UK

In recent times, the number of individuals reporting mental health issues has increased.

Between 1993 and 2014, the number of people with common mental health conditions increased by 20 percent in both men and women.

In any given week, the proportion of people reporting serious mental health symptoms increased from 7 percent in 1993 to over 9 percent in 2014.

The percentage of young women who report common mental health issues has been increasing.

Suicide and self-harm are becoming more common.

Since 2018, the number of reported suicides in England and Wales has also increased. They had been descending for some time before that.

This is partly because the rules for recording causes of death changed in 2018. As a result, more deaths are now classified as suicide, whereas previously they may have been classified as something else.

However, since 2018, there has been a noticeable increase in the number of men and people under the age of 25 who have committed suicide.

We also understand:

Between 2000 and 2014, the number of people reporting self-harm increased by 62 percent (that means it more than doubled).

Between 2000 and 2014, the number of people who reported having had suicidal thoughts increased by 30 percent.

The number of persons who have suicidal ideation or those who are involved in self-harm is increasing at a higher rate than the general number of people suffering from mental illness.

This could indicate that people are having a tougher time coping with mental health issues.

At the time of writing, the government has just released much-needed plans to improve the wait times for elective surgeries such as hip replacements. But although the government and the NHS recognise the mental health crisis and £500 million is being used to improve waiting times for mental health services, the lack of good facilities and specialist staff available to implement those changes quickly enough is questionable.

If patients do not receive appropriate early interventions, the state of their mental health is likely to deteriorate rapidly. But what can be done to alleviate the problem?

Whilst everyone should be equally entitled to the same level of health care in the NHS, arguably it is perhaps time for those who are in a financial position to do so to look for private support, thereby reducing wait times for those in more vulnerable situations. This could, for example, even include mental health retreats for people who are suffering from early-stage mental health issues such as depression, anxiety, eating disorders, or drug abuse.

Mental Health Retreats in The UK

The mental retreats in the United Kingdom are not ‘rehabilitation centres’ or ‘medical retreats’; rather, they are retreats designed to assist normal people who are dealing with stress in regaining their footing.

We all go through periods in our lives when we struggle to cope with the burden of making everything work. Sadly, these stages can ‘stick,’ and we begin to believe that we will be unable to achieve our objectives over a longer period, often months or years. With premium mental health retreats in the UK, the goal is to ensure that people don’t get stuck, and if you do, that you don’t stay stuck.

What To Expect From Mental Health Retreat In The UK?

These retreats are solution-oriented and goal-oriented. They will work with you to discover what your requirements are, as well as your objectives and support systems, through a formal evaluation so that they can best engage you with them. A mental health retreat, on the other hand, is about taking time for oneself rather than working on yourself. These retreats also emphasize the importance of relaxation and healing, which means they will emphasize active relaxation techniques like meditation and massage.

Our retreats have a strong emphasis on changing how you view your problems, as this is a big source of stress for many individuals. Many philosophers have concluded that it is not the problems themselves that give us trouble, but rather how we perceive and respond to them. These retreats will help you break down these responses so that previous habits don’t cause you problems in the future.

Days at the retreats normally start with a group session, either focusing on people and how they can support them as a group, or attending a group presentation by your retreat leader. Following that, there will be yoga lessons to aid with relaxing and rewriting some of the old ways of retaining tension in your body. Depending on your schedule, your afternoon may be spent on one-on-one counselling, massage, or homework, all while being able to do it in the comfort of your room or our lovely surroundings.

What Therapy Techniques Are Employed At Mental Health Retreats?

Mental health retreats are evidence-based and work in tandem with current research to ensure that what we offer is effective for you. Acceptance Commitment Therapy (ACT), Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT), and Existential Psychotherapy are some of the techniques we use; all these methods have been well proved via empirical research to have a major impact on the experience of anxiety, depression, and stress. In addition to these psychotherapeutic techniques, we use mindfulness, massage, and yoga all of which have been found to reduce stress levels.