Online Consumer Tools and Support

Mental health disorders affect a significant percentage of the global population, but availability of mental health professionals and effective treatments is severely limited. In addition, those with mental health conditions encounter substantial barriers to seeking treatment (e.g., stigma concerns) even where services are available. The Internet is now accessible to 60% of the world’s population, providing a platform for delivering mental health interventions and tools in a private, convenient, scalable way to those affected by psychiatric illness. This chapter discusses online tools for individuals seeking information, support, and help for common mental health conditions. The focus is on online tools, including Internet-based interventions (IBIs) and social media platforms, with emphasis on how consumers and mental health patients can use these tools to engage in and empower self-care. Guidance is also offered to help users, including those with mental health disorders and their family members, clinicians, and health care systems, find trustworthy quality Internet information and tools. The chapter concludes by considering future directions that could improve the potential of online tools to help reduce the global burden of untreated mental health disorders.