"Developmental Disabilities" is a general term that includes intellectual disability but also includes other disabilities that become apparent during childhood.
Developmental disabilities are severe chronic disabilities that can be cognitive or physical or both. The disabilities appear before the age of 22 and are likely to be lifelong. Some developmental disabilities are largely physical issues, such as cerebral palsy or epilepsy. Some individuals may have a condition that includes a physical and intellectual disability, for example, down syndrome or fetal alcohol syndrome.
Intellectual disability (ID) is a type of development disability, characterized by significant limitations in both intellectual functioning and in adaptive behavior. This means an individual’s intellectual functioning might deter them from meeting with expectations of society, family and community and hamper the ease of daily living. However, there is great and often complicated variance within IDs. For example, some people with ID can live independently to a large extent, or with minimal effort. While people with severe ID will be completely dependent on an ecosystem or community or be institutionalised for the rest of their lives. Our involved approach helps us formulate paths towards improving the quality of life of such individuals depending on their own unique circumstances.
Condition & Abilities:
Mental health disorders affect mood, thought processes or behavior and can manifest in anyone at any time of their life. It does not impact cognitive abilities, but can change a person's perceptions and thought processes and affect a person's everyday functioning and ability to relate to others.
However, intellectual disabilities and physical disabilities, both fall under the umbrella term of developmental disabilities. These are chronic conditions that appear at birth, but certainly before the age of 22, and sometimes, but not always, occur together.
IQ:
IQ of the person with mental illness remains above average and unchanged. However,
in order for someone to be diagnosed with an ID, the person must have a well below average IQ i.e. 70 or below 70, and have severe limitations on daily functioning skills, which include conceptual skills, social skills, and problem solving.
Time period
Mental illness is in many cases periodic. However, Developmental disabilities and ID are permanent in nature.
Training and Therapies
People with mental illness need mental health care, medical and psycho therapies. In general, they have no intellectual impairment and can live independently when their mental health problem is controlled.
People with ID are not ill, unless they have a common illness. They need easy-to-understand information, education, training to live and be included in the society.
Genetic Factors
Mental illness can have genetic causes, but will in most cases start as a result of feelings of depression, anxiety, and confusion. On the other hand,
ID can be caused by genetic factors, or by environmental factors, such as infections, or by a lack of oxygen supply to the brain during pregnancy or at birth.
As both the above-mentioned conditions are different in many aspects, similarities are not possible to figure out. However few similarities can be identified in the below mentioned areas:
1. Treatment - Sometimes people with mental illness and ID need medical interventions.
2. Therapies - Various types of therapies are required by all such as occupational therapy, physiotherapy, art therapy etc.
3. Awareness - General population awareness is needed for both the conditions.
4. Barrier free environment - Must for safe accessibility.
5. Govt. schemes and benefits - Both the conditions fall under PWD act.
6. Social Inclusion - Very important for recovery in case of people with mental illness, and for people with ID. Cocial inclusion is important for improving skills in many domains such as social skills, generalization of learned skills