The use of mental health problems in soap opera storylines helps to break down stigmas attached to such conditions, it has been pointed out.
According to the Royal College of Psychiatrists, a bipolar storyline on BBC 1 soap Eastenders has led to a greater understanding among the public of the illness.
MDF The Bipolar Organisation and the Bipolar Disorder Research Network also announced that following the storyline, there was "a huge increase" in the number of calls made to bipolar helplines.
New mums struggling with mental health issues, such as postnatal depression, could find that parenting advice websites give them the information they need to seek help.
A spokesperson for both MDF The Bipolar Organisation and the Bipolar Disorder Research Network noted the seriousness of mental illness.
"We simply lose too many sufferers to suicide," they said.
Figures from the Mental Health Foundation show that women are more likely to have been treated for a mental illness than men - but that men are three times as likely to commit suicide, suggesting that some males may struggle to seek help.
