Lens Analysis: History
Throughout history, mental health was viewed as a form of punishment from the Supreme Being by many communities worldwide. Anyone who possessed it was considered as demonic. Indians, Romans, Egyptians and even Greeks categorized mental illness as a personal and religious problem. These views led to primitive treatment practices and alienation of patients with mental illness. It was not until the beginning of the 20 th century and towards the end of the 19 th century that mental health gained some improvements through psychoanalysis. Before, understanding mental illness was not progressive due to the obvious beliefs and abnormal behavior that one possessed when interacting with other individuals. Other than the supernatural approach, society believed that mental illness had a somatogenic origin ( Foerschner, 2010) . The belief was common, particularly with the Greeks, who proposed the four senses of humor, causing mental illness. They considered mental disorders to be originating from parts of the organ or hormonal imbalances. These organs included; phlegm, blood, black and yellow bile. In women, for example, the hormonal imbalance was considered as a mental health condition. During Victorian times – between 1830 and 1900, menstrual-related anger, sadness related to pregnancies, anxiety, and chronic fatigue syndrome were all mental health disorders due to hormonal imbalance ( Foerschner, 2010) .
It was not until the late 19 th century that the paradigm shifted, and the community believed in mental illness's psychological origin. Greeks and Germans believed that mental illness originated from the brain. Even though some believed that drilling holes in the skull could cure mental illness, the progress articulated a deeper understanding of the social issue. Robert Sommer was the first psychiatrist to pen the work 'psychogenic' in 1894, which is considered to be the beginning of modern psychiatry ( Foerschner, 2010) .
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Lens Analysis: Humanities
Mental ill patients are part of the society, and the ways we take care of them affect the community. According to the world health organization study in 2018, 790 million people are living with behavioral or mental disorders worldwide ( Marks, 2018). That is roughly 11 percent of the global population. Therefore, the organization stressed the comprehension of mental illness to extend beyond the presence of known psychological disorders and to include intergenerational dependencies and subjective well-being. According to WHO, mental illness is a societal problem and inclusion of the terms competence, perceived self-efficacy, and emotional potential is proof that wellness affects both the individual and society as a whole ( Marks, 2018) .
The impact of mental disorders on the patient is evident. A mentally disordered patient runs the risk of having a decreased quality of life and lower productivity, leading to poverty and are more vulnerable to abuse. According to a United States study in 2001, over five million workers aged 16 to 55 years fail to seek or cannot find employment due to mental illness ( Marks, 2018) . It is estimated that mentally ill patients reduced earning by 3,500 dollars or more annually ( Marks, 2018) . Decreased unemployment and reduced earning lead to poverty and contribute to other health stressors due to low-quality care and social abuse. The burden of caring for a mentally ill patient falls to the family members of the patients. Family members do not often work to full capacity due to the increasing demands of caring for mentally ill individuals. This, therefore, leads to decreased economic output since they are incapacitated to work at their full potential. Although specific social impacts of mental disorders differ among countries and cultures, untreated conditions usually lead to high societal costs. The WHO estimates that 12 billion working days are lost due to mental illness annually ( Marks, 2018) .
References
Foerschner, A. M. (2010). The History of Mental Illness: From" Skull Drills" to" Happy Pills". Inquiries Journal , 2 (09).
Marks, M. (2018). Constructing Illness: How Society Effects Physical and Mental Illness.
