More than two in five Australians (42.9 per cent) aged 16-85 years have experienced a mental disorder in their lifetime, with one in five Australians (21.5 per cent) experiencing a mental disorder in the previous 12 months, according to findings released today by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS).
Linda Fardell, ABS head of health statistics, said: “Today’s release presents the findings from the National Study of Mental Health and Wellbeing. Nearly 16,000 Australians took part in this study, and it offers a comprehensive view of mental health in the community across 2020-2022.
“Anxiety was the most common group of mental disorders in 2020-2022. More than one in six Australians (17.2 per cent) had an anxiety disorder such as social phobia or post-traumatic stress disorder in the previous 12 months.”
“7.5 per cent of people had an affective disorder such as depression, while 3.3 per cent had a substance use disorder.”
Today’s data also showed that around 1.1 million (38.8 per cent) young adults aged 16-24 years experienced a mental disorder in the previous 12 months.
“Almost half of young females (45.5 per cent) and one third of young males (32.4 per cent) aged 16-24 years had a mental disorder in this period, with anxiety disorders being the most common,” Ms Fardell said.
“Nearly three in five people (58.7 per cent) who identified as gay, lesbian, or bisexual, or who used a different term to describe their sexual orientation, had a mental disorder in the previous 12 months. One in five people (19.9 per cent) who identified as heterosexual had a mental disorder in the same period.”
The study also gives insights into how people manage their mental health.
“Nearly a quarter of all Australians aged 16-34 years (22.9 per cent) had at least one consultation with a health professional for their mental health in the last 12 months,” Ms Fardell said.
“8.2 per cent of people in this age group also accessed other services for their mental health including treatment programs, crisis support, counselling, support groups and chat rooms.
“Almost half of all people who had a mental disorder in the previous 12 months (45.1 per cent) saw a health professional for their mental health and one in seven (14.3 per cent) accessed other services.”
