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Used To Diagnose Mental Illnesses

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The U.S. Department of health and human services exclaims that “Mental health includes emotions, psychological and social well-being of the body. These affect how everyone thinks, feels and acts” (Aspa). The U.S department of health and human services also states that “emotions and well-being of the body is an important stage of life from childhood to adolescence through adulthood”. According to the National Institute of Mental Health, “43.8 million adults experience mental illness each year and nearly 10 million, or 1 in 25 adults, are living with a serious mental illness.” As a result, The American Psychiatric Association has identified and classified these mental illnesses into four categories; anxiety, mood disorders, bipolar disorders …show more content…

The National Alliance on mental illness lists the following stages of diagnosis. Every mental illness diagnosis consists of “physical exams, psychological evaluations, lab testing and brain imaging” (Diagnostic…of mental illness). Sonja Lillrank M.D., Ph. D, Assistant director for psychiatry wrote a book; Alzheimer’s and Other Dementias, in which she touches base on some of the imaging used to help diagnose mental disorders. Lillrank explains “The most common imaging techniques used to help diagnose mental illnesses are: computer tomography, magnetic resonance imaging and positron emission tomography”. Many people think that there is no difference between the images, however those people are wrong. In Lillrank’s book she defines each type of imaging. “The first type of imaging is a Computer tomography scan. This shows the physical structural abnormalities of the brain. Another type of scan is magnetic resonance images. These use powerful electromagnets to provide a detailed image of the brain. Finally, doctors can also use positron emission tomography, which provides a rough picture of the brain's metabolic activity, chemistry and …show more content…

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

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