Behavioral health issues affect one in ten adults over the age of 18. This was according to a CDC report “Morbidity and Mortality” in the October 1st issue. According to the NIMH (National Institute of Mental Health), one in four adults had a diagnosable behavioral health disorder at some point in their life.

However, with the rise in numbers, there isn’t a reciprocal rise in psychiatrists to handle the demand. This result puts an increased demand for behavioral health treatment by primary care physicians. When a primary care physician identifies a behavioral health disorder, they often have limited referral options and resort to medication as an answer.

Millions suffer from mental illnesses; however, due to it’s often unseen nature, many people go decades trying to cope with it themselves instead of seeing a professional for help.

In fact, with recent budget cuts that will reduce Federal spending on behavioral health care totaling to about $168 million; will render roughly 373,000 mentally ill adults and children without health care for their behavioral health issues.

Behavioral health issues have seen a dramatic increase in diagnosis over the past few decades. Often times, the associated treatment with the diagnosis have little or no effect on the mental wellbeing of the patient.

The reason is due to the general lack of proper screening methods and timely diagnosis. In fact, according to Steven Hollon, PhD at Vanderbilt University – “half of the folks being treated with antidepressants aren’t benefitting from the pharmacological effects of the drugs themselves but rather from a placebo effect.”

Medical professionals often result in prescribing drugs to treat the symptoms of the behavioral health as opposed to recommending therapy – which in most cases of low and mild depression, proves to be more effective and reduces the chance of relapse in the future.

Mental health issues affect one in every four Americans and have devastating costs associated with it. Behavioral health disorders are the leading cause for disability with anxiety disorders and depression playing a significant factor.

While most adults do visit their physicians on a more frequent basis for physicals, they tend to ignore the problems associated with the brain until it takes a toll in their daily lives. The problem with placing your mental health on the backburner is that behavioral health issues can be incredibly costly to treat if not detected in time.