In the treatment of mental disease, incredible progress has been made. As a result, many mental illnesses can now be treated almost as effectively as physical illnesses.
The majority of mental health therapy options fall into one of two categories.
- Somatic
- Psychotherapeutic
Drugs, electroconvulsive therapy, and other brain-stimulating therapies are examples of somatic treatments (such as transcranial magnetic stimulation and vagus nerve stimulation).
Psychotherapy (individual, group, family, and marital), behavior therapy approaches (such as relaxation training or exposure therapy), and hypnotherapy are all examples of psychotherapeutic treatments.
Most studies show that a treatment approach that includes both medications and psychotherapy is more successful than either treatment modality alone for serious mental health disorders.
Psychiatrists aren’t the only mental health professionals who have been trained to help people with mental illnesses. Clinical psychologists, psychiatric nurse practitioners, and social workers are among the others. Psychiatrists (and, in some states, psychiatric nurse practitioners) are the only mental health professionals who can prescribe medicines, and psychotherapy is the primary focus of other mental health professionals. Drugs are defined by many primary care doctors and different types of doctors to address mental health conditions.
Medications
Psychiatrists and other medical experts utilize a variety of psychoactive medicines because they are highly effective. These medications are frequently classified according to the disorder for which they are most commonly administered. Antidepressants, for example, are used to treat depression.
The most commonly prescribed antidepressant is
- SSRIs such as fluoxetine, sertraline, paroxetine, fluvoxamine, vortioxetine, vilazodone, escitalopram, and citalopram are selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs).
Antidepressants come in a variety of forms
- SNRIs, such as venlafaxine, duloxetine, levomilnacipran, or desvenlafaxine, decrease serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake.
Bupropion and other norepinephrine-dopamine reuptake inhibitors
Because of their negative effects, tricyclic antidepressants like amitriptyline and nortriptyline are rarely used to treat depression. However, if people also have a disease that causes persistent pain that interferes with activities and jobs, these medications may be taken. Tricyclic antidepressants can help certain types of pain.
Monoamine oxidase inhibitors, such as phenelzine, tranylcypromine, and selegiline patch, are sometimes used when other antidepressants have failed.
Antipsychotic medications from the past, such as chlorpromazine, haloperidol, and thiothixene, can aid with psychotic diseases like schizophrenia and behavioral issues. Newer antipsychotic drugs (also known as atypical or 2nd-generation antipsychotics) are now frequently prescribed as first-line therapy. Aripiprazole, asenapine, brexpiprazole, cariprazine, iloperidone, lumateperone, lurasidone, olanzapine, paliperidone, quetiapine, risperidone, and ziprasidone are some of the newer antipsychotics. Clozapine is increasingly being utilized for persons who do not react to other antipsychotic medicines.
Antidepressants and SSRIs, and antianxiety medicines like clonazepam, lorazepam, and diazepam are used to treat anxiety disorders such as panic disorder and phobias.
Bipolar disorder is treated with mood stabilizers such as lithium, carbamazepine, divalproex sodium, valproic acid, and lamotrigine. Bipolar disorder can also be treated with a variety of antipsychotic medications. Aripiprazole, asenapine, cariprazine, lurasidone, olanzapine, quetiapine, risperidone, and ziprasidone are some of the medications available.
Psychotherapy
Significant advancements have been made in the discipline of psychotherapy, sometimes known as talk therapy, in recent years. The therapist can frequently assist the person in identifying the basis of the difficulties and considering methods for dealing with them by creating a sympathetic and welcoming environment. Psychotherapy can help a person achieve emotional awareness and insight, leading to a change in attitude and behavior, allowing them to live a richer and more happy life.
In a wide range of situations, psychotherapy is suitable and helpful. Even persons who do not have a mental health diagnosis may find psychotherapy beneficial in dealing with job loss, grief, or a family member’s chronic illness. There is also a lot of group psychotherapy, couples therapy, and family therapy.
The majority of mental health professionals use one of six types of psychotherapy:
- Behavioral therapy is a type of counseling that focuses on
- Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) is a type.
- Interpersonal counseling
- Psychoanalysis
- Psychodynamic psychotherapy is a type of psychotherapy that focuses on
- Supportive psychotherapy
- Behavioral therapy is a type of counseling that focuses on
Behavioral therapy entails a variety of interventions aimed at helping the client unlearn maladaptive behaviors (such as reliance and an inability to handle frustration) while also teaching adaptive behaviors (openness to experience and conscientiousness). One example of behavioral therapy is exposure therapy, which is commonly used to treat phobias. During exposure therapy, people are exposed to fearful objects, activities, or events in a safe atmosphere. The goal is to help people stop avoiding the things they are afraid of it.
Cognitive therapy and behavioral treatment are connected. Cognitive-behavioral therapy, a blend of the two, is sometimes utilized. Learning theory, which states that abnormal behaviors are caused by incorrect learning, is the theoretical foundation of behavioral treatment.
Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) is a type.
Cognitive therapy aids in the identification of cognitive distortions and the understanding of how these distortions contribute to problems in one’s life. People may, for example, think in all-or-nothing terms (“if I am not a total success, I am a complete failure”). The notion is that how people perceive experiences determines how they feel and behave. People learn to think about their experiences in new ways after identifying their underlying beliefs and assumptions, reducing symptoms, and improving behavior and moods.
Interpersonal counseling
Interpersonal therapy was developed as a brief psychologic treatment for depression to improve a depressed person’s relationship quality. It concentrates on the following points:
- Grief that hasn’t been resolved
- Conflicts that develop when people are required to fulfill responsibilities that are not what they expected (such as when a woman enters a relationship expecting to be a stay-at-home mother and finds that she must also be the major provider for the family)
- Social role transitions (such as going from being an active worker to being retired)
- Having a hard time interacting with others
The therapist teaches the person to strengthen interpersonal relationships by overcoming social isolation and responding to people less habitually.
Psychoanalysis
Sigmund Freud invented psychoanalysis in the early twentieth century, and it is the oldest form of psychotherapy. Free association is a technique in which the person rests on a couch in the therapist’s office four or five times a week and seeks to utter whatever comes to mind. Much of the emphasis is on assisting the person in comprehending how old patterns of interaction recur in the present. The person’s relationship with the therapist is an important aspect of this approach. Understanding how the past influences the gift allows a person to develop new, more adaptable ways of operating in relationships and at work.
Psychodynamic psychotherapy is a type of psychotherapy that focuses on
Like psychoanalysis, psychodynamic psychotherapy focuses on identifying unconscious patterns in existing ideas, feelings, and behaviors. However, instead of reclining on a sofa, the participant normally sits and only attends 1 to 3 sessions per week. Furthermore, the interaction between the person and the therapist receives less attention.
Supportive psychotherapy
The most prevalent type of psychotherapy is supportive psychotherapy, based on an empathetic and supporting relationship between the client and the therapist. It helps people communicate their emotions, and the therapist assists with problem-solving. Primary care doctors may be able to use problem-focused psychotherapy, a type of supportive treatment successfully.
Electroconvulsive Therapy (ECT) is a electroconvulsive
Electrodes are put on the head for electroconvulsive therapy. A series of electrical shocks are delivered to the brain while the patient is under anesthesia to produce a brief seizure. This therapy has been proven to be the most effective treatment for severe depression time and time again. Electroconvulsive therapy causes transient memory loss in many patients. Electroconvulsive therapy, on the other hand, is safe and rarely causes significant issues, contrary to popular belief. Any risk has been considerably decreased thanks to modern anesthetics and muscle relaxants.
Other forms of brain stimulation
Other brain-stimulating therapies, such as repeated transcranial magnetic stimulation and vagus nerve stimulation, could help people with depression who aren’t responding to medication or psychotherapy. These treatments entail using magnetic fields or vagus nerve stimulation implants to directly activate or stimulate the brain. Chemical messengers (neurotransmitters) are thought to be released by activated cells, which assist regulate mood and may thereby alleviate depression symptoms.