Abstract
Mental illnesses are an important health problem that negatively affects the individual, family, and society, and causes loss of functionality and disability in Turkey and the world. Individuals with mental illness attribute a meaning to the illness according to their own beliefs and cultural values in which they live. Since the cultural values and beliefs of each society differ, the meaning given to mental illness also differs from society to society. Therefore, help-seeking behaviors of individuals in the case of mental illness also differ. Help-seeking behaviors of patients can be in the form of applying to health institutions, or it can be also in the form of applying to non-medical healers, fortune-tellers, and healers. In light of this information, the aim of this review is to examine the help-seeking behaviors of individuals with mental illness in detail.