Arent Mental disabilities and mental health issues different? When I hear someone talk about a mental disability I think of something like a learning disability, or autism. I dont believe they have the propensity to be violent anymore or less than the average. Mental health, however, I think are more states of the mind and can happen to anyone with or without mental disability. Mental health episodes cause one to think and believe in extraordinary circumstances which causes people to do extraordinary things. Im fairly certain thats what the op was talking about.