By Bri Dittlinger, MSW, LCSW, For The Mountain Times
“Mental health matters. Let’s shatter the silence.” – World Health Organization
Mental health is a topic that has historically been dismissed, shamed, and even fabricated. Mental health is more than just mental illness, silent struggles, or a laundry list of labels. Mental health is preventative wellness, facts and resources, and ways to hold space for yourself and your loved ones to ask for help and offer support. My hope is to share some mental health facts, tips, and resources to help break the stigma surrounding this topic, and create space for our community to embrace mental health.
Facts About Mental Illness:
Having anxious thoughts or a depressed mood doesn’t always equal a diagnosis: they can simply be symptoms of a particular situation, environment, relationship, or other stimuli.
According to SAMHSA [2020], 1 in 5 adults in the United States experienced a mental health condition within the past year, and 1 in 20 adults was living with a severe and persistent mental illness [SPMI].
In 2022, according to the National Institute of Mental Health, 50.6% of individuals living with a reported mental illness sought some form of treatment, including inpatient or outpatient therapy or prescription medications.
There are over 450 mental illnesses listed in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual [DSM-5], and over 100 different therapeutic modalities, or types of therapy [Mental Health Match, 2025], including Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Narrative Therapy, Internal Family Systems, somatic therapies, and many more.
Facts About Mental Health Therapy:
You are allowed, and encouraged, to ‘interview’ multiple therapists until you find the right fit. Goodness of fit is one of the most important indicators in reaching your therapeutic goals [Kaiser Permanente, 2023].
Therapy is more than just a “rent a friend program.” It is a clinical intervention provided by a trained professional. Therapists will help you create a treatment plan to meet your personal mental health goals, and will help keep you accountable to those goals. Therapy can be skills based, process based, or a combination of the two [Psychology Today, 2025].
On average, therapy lasts for 8-20 sessions, or typically 3-9 months. Most therapy sessions last 50-55 minutes, and are generally scheduled weekly, bi-weekly, or monthly.
Many insurance companies cover mental health therapy; call the number on the back of your insurance card to see if you have coverage and what your copay may be. If you don’t have coverage, look for a therapist who offers a sliding scale fee for reduced out of pocket rates.
Check out this guide to beginning therapy to get started on your journey, provided by Mental Health Match: https://mentalhealthmatch.com/articles [2025].
How to Help:
Create a safe and respectful space for you and your people to talk about mental health and personal wellbeing without judgment, shame, or guilt.
Share resources when you can, or help research resources when you don’t know of any off the top of your head.
Practice using person first or “I” language, and avoid derogatory words or labels when referring to someone’s mental health.
Normalize accessing care for mental health, just as you would for physical health, and support your people in accessing care when they need it.
Create and practice a wellness routine. There are multiple areas of wellness, including physical, emotional, spiritual, social, environmental, and occupational well being [National Wellness Alliance, 2025].
Follow these tips to begin your wellness routine today: https://www.everydayhealth.com/self-care/start-a-self-care-routine/ [Everyday Heath, 2024].
Local Mental Health Resources:
Search for local therapists here: PortlandTherapyCenter.com or PsychologyToday.com
United Way: Call 211 for a list of local resources
Tri Counties Mental Health Resource Guide: chrome-extension://efaidnbmnnnibpcajpcglclefindmkaj/https://dochub.clackamas.us/documents/drupal/478bbfa5-6447-457e-8c08-58691f886560
National Lines for Life Crisis Lifeline: Call 988
Clackamas County 24/7 Support Number: Call 503-655-8585
Clackamas County Urgent Mental Health Walk-In Clinic: 11211 SE 82nd Ave., Suite O
Happy Valley, OR | Open Monday-Friday 9 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Project Respond: A mobile crisis team that provides in-the-moment support, assessment, safety planning, and connection to other community resources. Call 503-988-4888 to ask for a response from Project Respond.