NEWS BRIEF
The ’90s were a new era for nervous breakdowns
A recent study published in the July issue of American Psychologist compared the number of people in 1996 who said they have come close to a nervous breakdown to those who made the same claim in 1957 and those who made it in 1976. During the ’90s, 26% of Americans said they felt close to a nervous breakdown and another 7% said they experienced a mental health problem. Almost 40 years earlier, only 19% of Americans said they felt close to a nervous breakdown, and in 1976, 21% said they had felt close to a breakdown.
In 1957, respondents reported that concern over their health or that of a family member was most likely to trigger the feeling of an impending nervous breakdown. In 1996, though, among the most common causes cited for a near nervous breakdown were marriage or relationship problems. Additionally, researchers found that young, white, single mothers with low incomes and no involvement with an organized religion were most likely to experience mental and emotional distress.
Not only have the numbers and causes changed, but so have the coping mechanisms. In 1957, only 7% of those surveyed said they would turn to family or friends for help, while 44% said they would turn to a family physician. Almost four decades later, 28% of respondents said they would seek assistance from their close friends and relatives. Eighteen percent, respectively, said they would seek help from a doctor or turn to a nonmedical source such as a social worker or counselor.
In this recent study, unlike the two prior surveys, participants were asked to describe what they meant by "nervous breakdown" (descriptive of neurotic behavior and mood disorders) and mental illness (associated with more serious problems such as psychosis and violent behavior). It’s worth noting that the term "nervous breakdown" is not a medical or scientific term but nonetheless one that some researchers have found useful when surveying people about their self-perceived measures of mental health.
It is most typically used to describe feelings of helplessness, loss of control, and anxiety.
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