The word is out that there are resources available for anyone struggling with their mental health but the belief that this kind of help is only for those with severe mental health issues gets in the way.

"We need to normalize mental health care because we always say mental health care IS health care," Duane Piccirilli, executive director of the Mahoning Valley Mental Health and Recovery Board said. "But to the average person, there's still a lot of stigma with that," he said.

Piccirilli told 21 News it's the men who struggle with mental health issues and seeking help the most. Through public service announcements he's tried to break that stigma.

"When we do those commercials, we'll try to do local people that people know," Piccirilli said. "Elected officials, maybe local celebrities, you know if we have men on there talking, then we'll see an increase in calls from men coming in," he said.

Sometimes the issue isn't a reluctance to reach out, it's a lack of knowledge of the signs and symptoms of mental health issues.

"A lot of people, especially men, will go to the doctor with physical issues. Their stomach's bothering them, they're stressed, they don't sleep and these are all signs of depression," Piccirilli said.

"Everything in the body is connected," Larry Tepe, chief clinical officer at Compass Family and Community Services said. "Often times symptoms of mental health can appear to be physical so people may be seeking treatment in other areas and not realize that there's a mental health component that needs help," he said.
Tepe adds, Compass casts a wide net to get help for as many people as possible.

"We're attending different local events, we do things such as this (21 News interview) to kind of put it out there that you know, we're here and we're here to help," Tepe said. "We partner with a lot of other agencies and community providers that can do some different campaigns," he said.

However, despite the organizations, resources and care out there to address mental health issues both locally and around the world, Tepe said it may never be enough.

"We can do more and more and more but there's never enough. I feel like there's always going to be people that are either unreached for one reason or another or at that time they're just not ready," Tepe said. " There's always I think, going to be a need for outreach, always a need to try and break stigma, break stereotypes," he said.

If you or someone you know is struggling, you can call the suicide and crisis lifeline at 988.