Mental illness will strike one in five families in America this year, blindsiding spouses, parents, siblings and children, and derailing lives and careers.

At a glance

Mental illnesses:

• Are serious medical conditions that disrupt a person’s thinking, feeling, mood, ability to relate to others and daily functions.

• Include schizophrenia and bipolar, depressive, obsessive-compulsive and anxiety disorders.

• Are associated with chemical imbalances or other functional problems that interfere with the brain’s normal processes.

• Usually strike individuals in the prime of their lives, often during adolescence and young adulthood. All ages are susceptible, but the young and the old are especially vulnerable.

• Without treatment, can result in unnecessary disability, unemployment, substance abuse, homelessness, inappropriate incarceration, suicide and wasted lives.

• Cost more than $100 billion each year in the United States.

Source: National Alliance on Mental Illness; for more, visit www.namims.org.

Like high blood pressure, diabetes and other chronic ailments, mental illness can be treated and its effects mitigated.

It’s the stigma that accompanies it that needs to be fixed, said two Vicksburg residents Tuesday at the monthly meeting of Vicksburg’s family support group affiliated with the National Alliance on Mental Illness.

Carla Fleming, 42, and Thomas Carson, 32, were the featured speakers at “In Our Own Voices,” a NAMI presentation that focuses on the personal stories of living with mental illness.

“I hope that sharing my experience will help people understand that people with mental illness can get better, recover and live meaningful lives,” said Fleming, a native of Itta Bena who has been treated for psychosis since 1993. “There’s a lot of hope out there. Things are shifting toward recovery — not just being locked up in a room somewhere.”

Carson began experiencing depression and suicidal thoughts after losing his New York City job when the “dot com” technology stocks bubble burst in 2002. In despair, he called his mother, who convinced him to come home and supported him through his diagnosis and treatment.

“I hope that people will realize that mental illness is not different than any other illness,” he said. “We’re people just like everyone else, and we shouldn’t be ashamed of having a mental illness.” A Cornell University graduate in industrial and labor relations, Carson was born in Vicksburg and attended Vicksburg High School and the Mississippi School for Math and Science.

Mental illnesses are medical conditions, NAMI says. The major illnesses include schizophrenia and disorders such as bipolar, major depressive, obsessive-compulsive and anxiety. They strike people of all ages, cultures and classes.

NAMI Mississippi is the state organization that has offered support services to mental illness sufferers and their families for 22 years. The national organization will mark its 30th anniversary this year, said Ann Jensen, family education coordinator for the state NAMI chapter, based in Jackson.

“It’s very stressful for the families,” Jensen said. “Meeting together is helpful. They learn from each other. The coping skills they share are important for the families.”

And families are often the key to recovery, both Fleming and Carson said. “The love and support of my family and of organizations like NAMI have been most helpful to me.”

For the local NAMI chapter, Warren-Yazoo Mental Health Center hosts the local monthly support group meetings. WYMH Director Don Brown serves on the NAMI Mississippi board and said he’s proud to be a part of their work. “We’re providers, and they’re a consumer-advocacy group. We’re partners, but do different things.”

WYMH offers case management, counseling and therapy, resources and in-patient care. First-time clients can visit the administrative office, without an appointment, 8 to 10 a.m. Monday through Friday. A 24-hour phone line is also available for emergencies, Brown said. Fees are calculated on a sliding scale, though most of the budget comes from Medicaid revenues, he said.

“You know you’re going to have a confidential experience,” he added. “People can come and talk to somebody. If they are not sure what’s going on with themselves, a friend or a family member, they can come here and get a little guidance.”

Confidentiality is a key component for those who suffer from mental illness, especially as long as the social stigma remains.

“People have lost jobs when it was found out that they were in treatment,” said Harriette Mastin, the local NAMI leader, advocate and facilitator. Security clearances have been pulled. People living with mental illness often live in “great fear” of being discovered, she said. Some will not get prescriptions filled locally or consult nearby doctors, she said, to keep their struggle from being known.

NAMI’s local support group usually includes 10 to 12 people each month, people whose spouses, parents, children or siblings suffer from a mental illness. They welcome new attendees and visitors.

“We have enjoyed the people we’ve met here and the support we get,” one woman said. “We also feel that it’s a quality organization.”

The local NAMI affiliate also tries to offer, at least once a year, a free 12-week family education course which provides an overview of medications and other treatment decisions a family can expect, said Mastin. “This is especially designed for family members trying to help an ill loved one.”

NAMI was established in 1979 by a group whose family members had mental illnesses. Their goals were to find strategies for coping with the illness and its effects on their loved one, to educate others and dispel ignorance and stigma and act as advocates.

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Contact Pamela Hitchins at phitchins@vicksburgpost.com