How to Find the Best Psychiatric Professionals

August 6, 2011 by Leave a Comment

When it comes to your mental health, you need the best psychiatric professional you can find to help you through your situation. This means investing time into research. There are many places to start looking such as canada 411, but first you need to find the type of help you need.

Psychiatrists, like doctors, have their own field of speciality. Some specialize in addictive personality, while others specialize in depression or obsessive-compulsive disorder. You need to find which of these areas you need to start your search. If you aren’t sure, you can always narrow down the speciality list.

Begin your search for psychiatrists with your local area. Your city’s local health department is a place to start. They can give you a listing to start checking out. Don’t be afraid to ask for their recommendation.

Then go online and start investigating the psychiatrists. The best ones will have more good reviews than bad. But beware of those who have no bad reviews. Narrow your search down to several of them to check out.

Make an appointment with the psychiatrists you have chosen for a first interview. This is to get your personal impressions about the psychiatrists. If they make you feel uncomfortable or out-of-place beyond the first meeting, then cross them off the list. You need someone with whom you are comfortable to discuss your situation.

Ask a few questions. The most important questions to ask are their approach to treatment and how successful they have been with other patients. Be wary of any treatments you are against and abnormally high success rates.

Finally, when you do settle on a psychiatrist, monitor your progress. The best psychiatric professional is the one who makes progress in your treatment.

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Redefining Expectations: Mental Health

July 20, 2011 by Leave a Comment

Assumptions define the public — truths that aren’t quite proven, ideas that aren’t quite correct. Logic is dismissed in the wake of easier acceptance; and the stigmas of the past chase after the present, with the masses refusing to admit their failings.

And there is, perhaps, no greater failing than with the issue of mental health. Many swear that diseases and their symptoms affect only a small percentage of the population, with the numbers thought to barely reach the thousands.

This thought incorrect, however — because statistics favor a far greater tragedy and illness is all too easy to find.

As of 2011, it’s estimated that one out of every four individuals worldwide will experience some form of mental disorder (with depression being the most common of these, claiming over 30 percent). Gender offers no relief and neither does age. All social and economic classes are instead affected — with a total of 450 million people sharing a common thread of disease.

These numbers are damning… especially when coupled with the statistics of rehabilitation. Of the 25 percent of the global population burdened with illness, only one-third will seek treatment. This is due to a variety of factors: the cost of medication, a lack of awareness and — most distressingly — a fear of being rejected by peers. Over 60 percent of those who refuse treatment cite anxiety as the cause.

This cannot remain.

Mental health isn’t an uncommon problem. It must therefore receive the care it deserves — with the masses willing to acknowledge it, rather than trying to shove the thought away.

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Tips for Good Mental Health

June 12, 2011 by Leave a Comment
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Healthy mental health is very important for a person to control their behavior as well as emotions. Mental health is very important to handle life challenges, lead productive lives, and build good relationships. Mental health means overall well-being of the psychological health and it even includes ability to manage the emotions, how a person feels about themselves, and quality of their relationships.

One should understand that good mental health is not just merely absence of any mental health problems, but it is a condition where a person will be free from depression, stress, and anxiety. Mentally strong people have the ability to deal with stress, love for their life, ability to have fun even in difficult times, feeling of contentment, adapt changes, maintaining a balance between professional as well as personal life, and most importantly self-esteem and self-confidence.

People with good mental health always bounce back from their emotional problems and bad times. People with positive attitude always maintain a positive outlook on their life and they remain calm, focused, and creative during their difficult times. The key to have positive attitude towards life is to balance all the emotions.

Other than this physical health is also highly connected with emotional health. Therefore, a person must take enough rest, exercise regularly, should follow proper diet, avoid alcohol and smoking, and finally should get sunlight every day. Finally, people should engage themselves in activity that makes them happy and should some spend time for themselves to maintain good mental health.

 

 

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Treating Depression

May 9, 2011 by Leave a Comment
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Depression is a common psychological problem that nearly 17 million Americans face each year. Depression causes emotional stress as well as affects the lives of those around you and your life as well. You may feel down quite often, but when you have depression, you are constantly in a sad state, making it hard to function properly because nothing seems to matter anymore. There are several different ways you can treat depression.

Often times, depression is treated with drugs. These drugs work with your body to release chemicals that will help balance your mood. There are several different types of drugs you can take, but everyone reacts differently to each drug. You should talk to your doctor to know which one is right for you.

Psychotherapy can also help patients with depression. Psychotherapy works by meeting one on one with a professional to help you sort out your problems. Usually, you will find some sort of relief by having a professional help you out.

An easy way to help treat depression is to simply exercise. Exercise helps to release chemicals in the brain that put you in a good mood. If you are severely depressed, you may not be able to rely completely on exercise as a remedy, but it will still help.

Other than these options, there are plenty of other ways to treat depression including natural ways. You may have to work with a variety of these treatments to get over your depression such as exercising and seeking psychotherapy. Other treatments include eating a balanced diet, getting a decent amount of sleep, and receiving routine massages.

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The Job of a School Psychologist

May 2, 2011 by Leave a Comment

A school psychologist works with youths and children in order that they may thrive behaviorally, socially, academically, and emotionally. They work alongside parents, teachers, and others to develop a healthy, supportive, and safe environment for learning.

School psychologists also receive extensive training in the areas of education and psychology. They complete master degree of a minimum 60 graduate semester hours, which includes a year internship. With the training a student will focus on preparations in educational interventions and mental health, learning, child development, consultation, school law and more.

These health professionals work in a variety of locations such as mental and school based health centers, juvenile justice centers, Universities, private schools, public schools, hospitals, residential clinics, day treatment centers, and private practice. School psychologists work with students by providing mentoring, counseling, and instruction to students that may have behavioral, emotional and social problems. They also help the student with their social and communication skills so they will be able to manage their anger, problem solve, improve self determination, and boost their self esteem and more.

Many children that have problems at school also have problems at home and a school psychologist will work with families to try to come up with a plan that will improve school/home collaboration in addition to teaching parenting skills. They will inform the parents of behavioral problems that may be causing interferences in the child’s school success. They also provide assistance in the area of coordinating support services in the community and they make referrals when needed. They will inform parents of what resources the child may be eligible for in the area of special educational services.

 

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Signs and Symptoms of Anxiety Disorders

March 28, 2011 by Leave a Comment

There is no single one anxiety disorder, but rather anxiety disorders fall into a few different categories depending on their causes and their symptoms. Because of this, it is possible for them to feel and look very different when being experienced from one person to the next. A single individual could suffer from very intense anxiety attacks that seem to strike without warning, and then someone else could feel panicky at the mere thought of going to a party and being around strangers. Another person may struggle greatly with a fear of driving, or may struggle with intrusive and uncontrollable thoughts. Another person all together may live in what is essentially a constant state of fear and tension, constantly worrying about absolutely everything and anything under the sun.

Despite all of the different forms that an anxiety disorder can take on, all of these disorders do share a single major symptom which is a persistent or a severe worry or fear in a situation or situations where normal people would not feel threatened. There are both emotional and physical symptoms of anxiety disorders. Emotional symptoms include apprehensive and dreading feelings, difficulty concentrating, tense and jumpy feelings, always anticipating the worst, feeling irritable and restless, always worrying about danger and feeling like your mind is blank.

Anxiety is more than just an emotional feeling, because the body uses fight or flight to respond to anxiety, and that is where these physical symptoms come into play. Because there are so many different symptoms of anxiety, many people with anxiety disorders are misdiagnosed as having a medical condition before they get the real diagnosis and can begin getting help.

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Do You Have an Anxiety Disorder?

March 24, 2011 by Leave a Comment

It is completely normal for you to feel worried, tense or afraid when you are under pressure, or when you are facing a really stressful situation. The feeling of anxiety is a completely normal reaction that your body has when danger exists. Anxiety is a natural response that acts like an alarm, going off any time that we are feeling threatened. Although this type of anxiety may be an unpleasant feeling, it is not necessarily a bad thing for us.

Anxiety can help us to feel alert as well as focused, it can spur us into action and it can motivate us so that we can solve our problems. When anxiety becomes overwhelming or constant however, or when it interferes with your daily life, then you may have crossed from normal anxiety into an anxiety disorder.

Symptoms of Anxiety Disorders: feeling worried, tense or on edge constantly, anxiety interfering with school,  feeling plagued by worries or fears that are obviously irrational and yet cannot be shaken, believing that something bad is going to happen if you do not do certain things in a certain way, feeling like you have to avoid certain everyday activities and situations because they make you feel more anxious, experiencing sudden and unexpected panic attacks with palpitations and a pounding heart.

If you are feeling these symptoms and they seem to be having an impact on your ability to live and enjoy your life, then the odds are good that you are suffering from an anxiety disorder. There is help out there if you are struggling with this type of problem, so reach out for help while you can, and keep your anxiety in check before allowing it to overwhelm you.

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Depression and Suicide

March 20, 2011 by Leave a Comment

Depression is typically one of the biggest risk factors for experiencing thoughts of suicide. The deep feelings of hopelessness and despair that go hand in hand with clinical depression can cause suicide to feel like the only available way to get through the pain. Thoughts of suicide or thoughts of dying should be perceived as a serious symptom that clinical depression is being experienced, and so suicidal talk, suicidal thoughts and suicidal behavior should absolutely be taken seriously. This is not only a warning sign that the person is currently thinking of suicide, but when someone talks about suicide, they are most commonly reaching out for help.

Here are some of the warning signs of suicidal thoughts and feelings:

-          The person might talk about killing one’s self or harming one’s self,

-          The person might express strong feelings of being trapped or feeling hopeless.

-          The person might be unusually preoccupied with dying or death in general.

-          The person might act in a reckless manner, as if they had a death wish, such as by driving recklessly or otherwise acting like they would not mind getting hurt or becoming killed.

-          The person might call people or visit them in order to say goodbye.

-          The person may seem to be getting their affairs in order.

-          The person may give away prized belongings.

If you believe that a friend or a family member could possibly be considering suicide, then you need to express the concerns that you have and seek out professional help as quickly as you possibly can. It is important that you talk openly about thoughts and feelings of suicide in order to save the life of someone in need.

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Symptoms of Anxiety Attacks

March 16, 2011 by Leave a Comment

Anxiety attacks are also known as panic attacks, and they are episodes of either intense panic or intense fear. These anxiety attacks typically occur completely suddenly and with little to no warning. For some people there is an obvious trigger behind the panic attack, such as getting stuck or trapped in an elevator, or thinking about something anxiety-inducing like a big speech that you have to give in a couple of hours, but for other people and other situations these panic and anxiety attacks come completely out of the blue with no warning at all.

Anxiety attacks typically peak within a period of ten minutes, and they very rarely last for longer than a half hour. During this short period of time, however, the level of terror and fear can be so ridiculously severe that the sufferer feels as if they are going to lose complete control or even die. The physical symptoms of the panic attack alone are so frightening that many people having this type of attack become convinced that they are having a heart attack rather than an anxiety attack. Once the anxiety attack has ended, people find themselves dreading that another may occur, especially in public places where getting out, or getting help, could be impossible.

Some of the signs and symptoms of anxiety attacks include a surge of completely overwhelming panic, a feeling of going crazy or losing control, chest pain, heart palpitations, feeling faint, difficulty breathing, feeling like choking, hyperventilation, chills, hot flashes, shaking or trembling, stomach cramps, nausea and feeling unreal or detached from the world around you. Not every symptom is felt during every panic attack, but they often hit in groups such as this.

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Types of Anxiety Disorders

March 9, 2011 by Leave a Comment

There are six different types of major anxiety disorders, and each is going to have its own distinct profile of symptoms. These are obsessive compulsive disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, panic disorder, post traumatic stress disorder, phobia and social anxiety disorder.

Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. This disorder is characterized by completely unwanted behaviors or thoughts that seem completely impossible to control or stop. You might be troubled with a variety of obsessions, such as a recurring fear that you did not turn the oven off, or that you may be capable of hurting someone. Uncontrollable compulsions are often common, such as tapping, counting, “checking” and obsessive hand washing.

Generalized Anxiety Disorder. This type of disorder often involves constant fears or worries that distract you from your normal activities, or a troubling and persistent feeling that something bad might happen. People that have this disorder worry constantly and feel anxiety all the time without ever really knowing why.

Panic Disorder. This disorder is characterized with repeated and unexpected panic attacks and a great feel of experiencing more episodes. Panic disorder is also often accompanied by agoraphobia, which involves a fear of being in any place where an escape or getting help would be difficult if the person had a panic attack. People that have agoraphobia tend to avoid large, crowded public places and confined spaces.

Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. This is an anxiety disorder that generally occurs in the aftermath of some life-threatening or traumatic event. Symptoms can include nightmares and flashbacks, hyper vigilance, easily startling, withdrawing from other people and avoiding any situation that may trigger memories of the event.

Social Anxiety Disorder. Social anxiety involves a debilitating fear of being seen the wrong way by people and of being humiliated in public. This is also known as a social phobia and entails being extremely shy and potentially avoiding all social situations all together in some severe cases.

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