Still there is dilemma which specialist should I meet, due to lack of awareness about mental health related problems among people. I hope this infographic will help to decide among different specialist such as psychologist or psychiatrist or co therapy. This grouping based on the root cause 1. may be biological which requires medication 2. the root cause may be life event or faulty learning etc which require counseling and psychotherapy. Highlighting the major focus rather than minimizing the importance of one over another. Mental illness are the result of a complex interplay between biological and environmental factors, hence combination of medication and counseling would be effective for many mental illness. Do not underestimate or overestimate the importance of one therapy over another.
While most drugs improving mental health conditions, side effects are often ignored.
Aware! Don’t just be a victim… make informed choice…
It is essential to continue to assess side effects present and modify treatment to minimize their negative impact, and to re-evaluate the necessity of any adjunctive therapies used for the therapy.
Common side effects
Consult your doctor if you have any problems with your medicine or if you are worried that it might be doing more harm than good. Your doctor may be able to adjust the dose or change your prescription to a different one that may work better for you.
Lets explore some studies on this issue….
Approaching psychiatric medications as drugs which produce immediate and delayed psychoactive effects, and which induce tolerance and dependence, fundamentally differs from the conventional understanding that suggests these drugs exert specific actions on (presumed) underlying disease processes. According to the conventional view, the drugs’ psychoactive properties are merely incidental “side-effects.” Despite six decades of intensive research in neuropharmacology, however, there is a lack of evidence that psychiatric drugs have a disease-specific action independent of their demonstrable psychoactive effects. These facts suggest that a radical change of thinking may be necessary about the nature, possibilities, and limitations of psychiatric drug treatment. Ref
Thoughts of suicide, sexual difficulties and emotional numbness as a result of anti-depressants may be more widespread than previously thought, a researcher has found. In a survey of 1,829 people who had been prescribed anti-depressants, the researchers found large numbers of people — over half in some cases — reporting on psychological problems due to their medication, which has led to growing concerns about the scale of the problem of over-prescription of these drugs. Ref
Psychotropic medications overprescribed to children, study suggests
A new study from the Journal of Marital & Family Therapy warns of the dramatic rise in the use of psychotropic medications for children. One in every fifty Americans is now considered permanently disabled by mental illness, and up to eight million children take one or more psychotropic drugs.
According to the authors the mental health field is currently designed to treat adults with psychotropic medications, but they are often misused in the case of children and adolescents, “This presents an ethical challenge to marriage and family therapists, who should be very cautious about these medications as an option for children. The long-term research on their safety for children is uncertain.”
“If the psychiatric community has been misled by pharmaceutical companies in thinking that these drugs are safe for their children, the parents of these children have been in turn deluded into putting their children in harm’s way.” Ref
Psychiatrist may not be accurately informing patients of the potential likelihood of such side effects, and that lack of adequate preparation may result in patients prematurely discontinuing their medication.
Metaphors are valuable tools in the counseling process because they create structure, explain ideas, evoke emotion, and influence attitudes. Metaphors are an indirect, nonthreatening way of addressing concerns. Metaphors can make an idea or topic more memorable to the client. Clients may use metaphors to express emotions or experiences that they have no other way of describing.
Metaphors raises therapeutic exchanges to a different level. it is easier for the client to gain a deeper understanding of his problem than in the simple reflection technique. Metaphors can be used to build a careful foundation before we approach an idea.
Metaphor allows clients to distance themselves from their own dilemma and emotionally frees them to work with the therapist toward discovering alternative resolutions. Discussions focused on the metaphor provide an opportunity for clients to release suppressed thoughts, emotions, and desires, while sidestepping any resistance.
Spontaneous metaphor makes the process seem natural. The technique is flexible, brings the client to life in the therapy session, and provides a bridge for generalization and change. It is a instrument for change, as well. It creates positive anticipatory feelings about future sessions.
A good metaphor should be simple, concrete, and relate to objects or events that the client is familiar with useful way of describing abstract concepts in familiar terms.
Various benefits of using metaphors in therapy
Examples of metaphor
Kaleidoscopes are an appropriate metaphor for change because kaleidoscope images constantly shift. Our life are shifting and changing too.
Butterfly is a common metaphor which represents transformation and change.
“If I tune the strings of music instrument too tight they break. If I tune them too loose, no sound will come out. So not too tight and not too loose works best” metaphor explain the importance of maintain balance.
“Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance, you must keep moving.” – Albert Einstein
Here are the steps to break the mind trap.
(1) Experience — Observe what really happens without judgement with self-distancing and mindfulness.
(2) Explanation — Discover the true meaning and purpose of the situation as a scientist responsible human being and discount all the negative inner voices and emotional reactions.
(3) Expectation — Decide what is the right thing to do rather than project past memories and feelings to the future.
Throughout the process, let the neo-cortex and your spiritual center take control.
