How is being a caregiver for the mentally ill be different than helping someone with another condition?

Quite different: Mentally ill people may be very challenging to work with in that they exhibit symptoms that may be hard to handle, such uncontrollable emotions, unusual behaviors - anger (excessive), panic attacks, violent behaviors, hallucinations, delusions etc. A caregiver for such patients must be ready to intervene on an emergent basis to refer such patients for acute care. There may some safety risk involv.

Mental Illness: It depends on what type of mental illness the pt has. A professional needs to evaluate the pt and rule out any clear and present danger to self or others, otherwise the pt needs to be placed in a safe environment such as a nursing facility or hospital. Peace and good health.