Professor Germanavičius listed the first signs when it is necessary to consult a doctor: it can be a sign of mental disorders

Besides the number of suicides, what other indicators show the mental health of Lithuanians?

Dependence on sedatives is a big problem. It has been ignored for the last 15 years and now we have a large number of older people who abuse these drugs. Treatment must also be available to them. One of the indicators is. Happiness indices: they also partly show the state of mental health, but it is a more subjective indicator of people’s expectations of fulfillment or non-fulfillment. However, this is not the structural factor that is constantly very important. Another really important factor is resilience, the ability to overcome difficult periods and adapt to changing life circumstances. Studies show that the stamina of the young is better than that of the previous generation. I mean more than 60 generations and men in particular are very vulnerable. Among them, suicides are the most common. In Eastern Europe, this group also stands out. Among them are many alcohol users and unprotected people.

How much physical things and disease depend on our mental health?

Physical health is closely related to mental health. The relationship between mental and physical health has been very well studied in the case of diabetes. People with severe psychotic disorders, schizophrenia, are known to have a significantly higher propensity for diabetes. It is not only genes that are to blame, but also environmental factors such as smoking, poor mobility, sedentary lifestyle and a highly irregular and inadequate diet. Due to their mental illness, these people often lose skills on how to cook hot food, how to count calories. I don’t know how to eat regularly. Sometimes you really like sweets. We have observed that these patients spend their entire retirement buying expensive chocolates. As a result, diabetes develops. Another thing is alcohol, which helps calm down. But the limit is very dangerous because physical health deteriorates a lot because of it.

Let’s drop some of the serious mental illnesses that lead to hospitalization and talk about the simple ones. Anxiety disorders, panic attacks: how do they develop?

Anxiety disorders can be a reaction to abnormal circumstances. Another group of anxiety disorders is related to the way we respond in childhood and especially in adolescence. Some fears, such as stopping the heart or contracting some disease, or having a fear of heights, are already a disorder that must be treated first by a family doctor and a psychologist or psychiatrist.

On the other hand, our health system is not always sensitive to those who suffer from personality disorders. I’m talking about long-term character traits, like a narcissistic personality disorder or an emotionally unstable type of personality disorder. On the one hand, those people want care and they want a lot of research, but then when they get an answer, they are very disappointed that doctors advise seeing a psychiatrist.

You mentioned narcissism, is it a mental illness?

Yes. A personality disorder that has developed over several decades when a person understands himself and is able to understand other people in a very limited way. Usually he just satisfies his own needs by using other people, idealizing himself and devaluing others. It is usually very scary for that person to leave him and this leads to very serious crises when said people, having experienced separation from their partner, kill or threaten to do so.

Can sociopathy and psychopathy be added to narcissism?

These are synonymous.

And so far, neither psychopaths, nor sociopaths, nor people with narcissism syndrome are being treated for free?

No, it’s not.

What is the attitude between doctors and the professionals themselves? Isn’t it true that doctors tend to prescribe drugs, treat them, and see psychotherapists as speakers?

This is a big problem all over the world, not just in Lithuania. Psychiatry is highly specialized, with at least 20 of its types. There are no addresses in Lithuania, like the elderly. A very important direction in the West, which has been abused a bit, is biological therapy. It includes drug treatment, other methods such as electrical impulse therapy, called electroshock.

Is it still applied in Lithuania?

Yes, it is one of the most effective treatments for the most serious disorders. With full anesthesia, watch out.

We constantly hear the phrase that cardiovascular diseases affect Lithuanians. But when we sit at the same table with cardiologists and examine where they come from, we are talking about stress, the same mental disorders. And now we say: it is very expensive to treat mental illness, but if we started running this system, would it ultimately be worth it for the country?

I am very happy about this. People experience stressful episodes of high blood pressure, arrhythmias, and the mechanisms by which these diseases develop are closely related to mental health. By preventing, for example, depression or anxiety, insomnia disorders, we could make a very significant contribution to the preservation of the cardiovascular system. Another thing is that if a person is older and needs treatment for the heart, collaboration is very important, as research shows that the use of antidepressants and concomitant psychotherapy can significantly reduce the doses of antihypertensive medications or the need to treat medications for various heart conditions.

Human health is largely self-reliant. When do you really need to worry and see a doctor?

A very important personal indicator is the energy level. Usually a person always feels that and motivation, energy level is one of the most important factors. Mood is very subjective and often depends on the seasons, the relationships. Another important aspect is sleep. If it is regular, in case of sleep disorders, you should consult a doctor and tell him how to adjust sleep without medication. You should also be alarmed if you experience any physical symptoms due to certain situations. If headaches or back pain occur after talking to the boss, then the person is prone to psychomatic disorders and resistance to stress needs to be increased.

How to increase it? What can we do ourselves to make mental health the best it can be?

First of all, this human capacity to enjoy is one of the important things. It is important to enjoy even the little things, your environment, nature, loved ones, books. Also psychohygiene, when at the end of the day or at night we rethink various events, the people we met and understand the meaning of those events, what we did in that situation not where we could have reacted differently. Later maybe apologize to that person and take another position. And of course, see your body where it hurts, what muscles are contracting. Resistance to stress also depends on fitness.

We need to increase our ability to understand what causes a stressful situation. In the past, there have been recommendations to avoid stressful situations. Now we cannot afford to shut down to people and not take risky actions. Another aspect is that people tend to take too many risks. So some need to stop, wait, and not take risky actions. Then the resistance to stress would increase.