Symptoms And Treatment Of Mental Health Disorders

Cognitive-Behavioral therapy (CBT) is an empirically supported treatment for a variety of disorder diagnoses. Although pharmacological treatments are the most widely used method of treatment in anxiety disorders in America, research has found that even though patients respond sufficiently to medication treatment initially some are unable

The shutdown of state mental hospitals and lack of available financial and institutional resources force mentally ill people to the United States Judicial System for mental health. Every year thousands of people are arrested for various crimes and they are sent to jail. Sixteen percent of these people have some type of mental health problem (Public Broadcasting System , 2001). When we consider that the United States has the largest incarcerated population in the world at 2.2 million, this number is staggering (Anasseril E. Daniel, 2007). This is about 1% of the entire population of the United States. There are many reasons as to why the situation has taken such a bad turn and when the history of the treatment of mental illness is examined one can see how the situation developed into the inhumane disaster it is today.

The provision of health care services being informed by principles of evidence-based care, integration and patient engagement has mixed outcomes for mental health care. Evidence-based care focuses heavily on psychopharmaceuticals compared to psychotherapy in terms of funding because it is easier to present results of different drugs (quantitative data) than to present results of therapy (ex. CBT → qualitative data).

Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) is recommended by the NICE guidelines as an effective treatment for many mental health problems, specifically depression and all of the anxiety disorders.

Everyone has a personality with character traits, but when these traits are rigid and self-defeating, they may interfere with functioning and even lead to psychiatric symptoms. A psychological disorder is describe as any disturbance of emotional equilibrium, as manifested in maladaptive behavior and impaired functioning, caused by genetic, physical, chemical, biological, psychological, or social and cultural factors. Schizophrenia is a disease that strikes people in their prime. It does not matter who you are, you can be diagnosis with schizophrenia. Many people all over the world are affected by bipolar disorders. There are two

Time magazine called them the military’s secret weapon (Thompson). Many pets eat them every day (Horowitz). They are effective in treating the most common male sexual disorder (Yue). Antidepressants have many uses, but they are primarily used in the treatment of mental health disorders. Their discovery was monumental for the science of psychiatry. Antidepressants are the primary treatment for a myriad of mental health disorders. However, many scientists, clinicians and patients question the effectiveness of antidepressants for this broad scope. Examination of effectiveness, side effects and alternative treatments suggest reduction in the scope of antidepressant use for mental health disorders.

Over the past years, many randomised controlled trials (RCTs) have been conducted to assess the effectiveness and/or the efficacy of numerous psychotherapies for various outcomes (1-5). Published meta-analyses, a quantitative synthesis of aggregated data, have shown that most of the psychotherapies could be considered effective (1-5) especially in the case of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) (5, 6). The findings from those meta-analyses are widely used to inform and guide clinical and policy practices. The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE), for example, strongly relies on the conducted meta-analyses to develop recommendations on psychotherapies for various disorders (http://www.nice.org.uk).

This case study pertains to a 37 year-old female named Ellen Waters of undisclosed race who appears to be suffering with some form of a depressive disorder. Ellen is a single (never married) graduate student who lives alone and works in home healthcare. Throughout her adult life she has been unable to or uninterested in maintaining a job or a relationship for longer than a few years, and even her current relationship may be waning (the longest she’s had, at about six years). Her early family life was tumultuous; there was heavy domestic strife between her parents, her father abused alcohol, and Ellen reported that both parents emotionally abused her (there is no mention of siblings). Ellen first attempted suicide at age

People overlook and ignore mental disorders due to the skepticism of the severity of the disorders. Some people do not believe that disorders exist. An example, people who want out of certain situations or an excuse to not do something will use the word, anxiety, as an excuse. Parents who have kids that lack the knowledge of how to stay still and how to focus will use the term, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder as an excuse, while the parents simply need to teach their kids in a harsher way so they understand. Depression allows for people who are lazy to have an excuse. However, doctors have proven mental disorders, and if left untreated, suicide or crime could be an outcome.

In Advocating For Psychotherapy, doctors prescribe medication, therapy sessions, and sometimes the doctors would like the patient to receive both. However, Doctors prescribe patients different types of medication based on how the illness has progressed. “Medication will have different effects on children than adults.” The Two major reasons are size and age. Adults are more sensitive than kids, due to their bodies processing slowly. Therefore, adults need to take lower dosages than children”. According to American Psychotherapy Association, “the percentage of outpatient mental health visits that involved only medication jumped from 44 percent to 57 percent between the time periods 1998 and 2007” (Advocating For Psychotherapy). Using psychotherapy involves regular counseling, which can be in a group or a one on one setting, which can vary in techniques. Psychodynamic therapy lets the patient focus on his or her subconscious, emotions and behavior problems. Patients can also take cognitive-behavioral therapy. This therapy focuses on how there is a pattern to their thinking and behavior. Lastly, there is drug therapy, which lets patients live a normal life with little to no psychological therapy (“Mental Disorder”). The outcome of psychotherapy is significant in the long run. Generally, the more therapy a patient receives, the more mentally stable he or she will become. Diagnoses and

Severe depression can have a devastating effects on not only individuals, but also on their families and communities. Depressive disorders when severe or prolonged enough can cause some patients to seek to harm themselves, or worse; to seek to end their lives. While over the last century there have been significant strides in the treatment of depression, there still is much work to be done. May medication that treat depression take a long time for patient to reach therapeutic dosages, mean that patients often have to wait weeks on longer for their symptoms to improve. Because of the significant time for these medication to begin to cause patients depression to enter remission, there is a critical time frame in which patients need help or

Depression treatment needs to begin with, consulting with a qualified professional mental health doctor. This gives affected person voice to talk out treatment options, and clearly understand the symptoms. Thereafter, the treatment is given that includes: medication, therapy and lifestyle changes. And in some occasion the health care giver can refer a patient to Psychologist or a Psychiatrist for further treatment.

Throughout the past years medical research has advanced concerning mental illnesses. Treatments for anxiety has been created based on research found on how to tackle anxiety. A common treatment is medication. Two common medications for anxiety is serotonin reuptake inhibitor, and serotonin norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor. Although other drugs are used, these are the most common ("Treatment"). This suggests that since medications are the most common, more severe symptoms may need extra treatment. Anxiety has multiple treatments including psychotherapy. Psychotherapy has multiple branches, one being cognitive behavioral therapy, which focuses on management of symptoms and skills to help relaxation. Another would be cognitive restructuring, which enforces positive thinking, along with coping plans for certain situations (Landro 2). This passage suggests that psychotherapy takes a personalized approach for treating anxiety. Although the treatments main focus is to better the patient, it leaves a lot for the victim's family and future. Treatments make take a while to help, which leaves victims feeling worse ("Depression" 2). This can lead one to conclude that because episodes are likely to occur, families must be extra careful to watch and support the victim in the future. Anxiety treatments range from medication to therapy. Victims may experience relapses in the future and it's important to continuously check up on

Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) helps patients become aware of their incorrect ideas that lead to anxiety and they learn to alter these ideas. CBT challenges the problems, extended exposure to places, or activities that trigger anxiety causing a gradual diminish of

Psychiatrists are starting to feel more like medication managers instead of actual psychiatrists. Dr. Pomerantz said after refusing to give one of his patients antidepressants a managed-care company pursued to keep him from seeing that patient as well as that psychiatrists are pushed to prescribe (Clay, 2000). Clay (2000), stated that cognitive, cognitive-behavioral and interpersonal therapy can be just as effective as medication for panic disorders, depression and eating disorders. Psychotherapy can also be helpful with the prevention of relapses and have a longer lasting effect. With tight budgets behavioral health companies would rather use general practitioners in lieu of psychotherapists. For a certain patient where a mix of psychotherapy and medication would be better health companies are still pushing toward medication (Clay, 2000).