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Successful Psychiatric Medication Treatment

December 21, 2017/in Psychiatry /by access

Modern medication tends to be more efficient in less time than in the past. However, it is crucial for the patient and the treatment itself to be controlled and followed by psychiatrists. You need you find the appropriate clinical combination that suits you best.

This delicate treatment requires a firm, consistent commitment from both doctor and patient and, in most cases, from the patient’s family. You should think about it in long terms because you would need to be patient to wait and see the whole benefits of your medication.

Several factors might affect the reaction of the medication in your body. They might be related to chemical processes in your brain. While some drug can act fast, most of them take longer to have a complete effect.

The psychiatrist will let you know an approximate time for the medication to act according to its dose and your medical condition. If you face your treatment correctly, you will notice how it has a noticeable and favorable impact on you.

Specific aspect should be taken into account in order to have positive and beneficial effects during the treatment and after it. If you follow and respect instructions, you would see how your life improves.

1.Taking Your Medication

Taking the medication on time, as well as, following your psychiatrist´s instructions would be essential elements to proper results. These steps might guarantee that you get full benefits. A great help might be to have a medication organizer and to set a reminder to take the pill every day at the same time. When you are going out, you should consider the dose so to take anywhere. Having an organized routine could help you to make this path easier.

2. Dosification

Your medication might need specific adjustment with time; it might be reduced if everything goes well or you might need to increase your dose. Make sure that these changes are supervised by your doctor even if your symptoms improved or subsided.

Do not try to leave your medication without consulting your psychiatrist; it will be dangerous for your health. You may be tempted to stop taking medication when your symptoms get better, and your treatment is successful but the consequences can be serious, and you might risk your own life.

On the other hand, it is possible to encounter some side effects which can be related to unpleasant feelings or aggressive reactions. If you notice any of the side effects, you should contact your psychiatrist as soon as possible to find a quick solution.

Remember that medication is not miraculous, it takes time to see results, and not everyone reacts in the same way. Moreover, you probably have to try different ones in order to find the right one for you.

3. Committing to Appointments

Your commitment to attend each meeting is an essential part of your recovery, especially during your first steps of recovery. This will help the professional to monitor your progress and your treatment to make any change if necessary.

The appointments will start once you have started taking medications. They will be regular with some intervals to make sure you are following instructions and to control side effects manifestations.

It might be crucial for you to keep your follow-up appointments so you can also check your progress and ask the psychiatrist about any inconvenience you encounter or any doubt that might come up. Appointments would be less frequent once your symptoms are regulated or controlled.

4. Physiotherapy

As a complement to your medication and treatment, it would be favorable to supplement it with psychotherapy or some non-medical interventions. This kind of therapy will encourage you to elaborate your issues differently. It will give you a new perspective, and it might also provide some tools that you can apply during and after the treatment. What is more, it might help you to overcome the challenges of sticking to a medication schedule.

5. Combine Medicine with Recreational Drugs or Alcohol

It should be stated that the combination of a mental medication and any recreational drug or alcohol is quite dangerous, sometimes it might be fatal to the person. This is because it can increase any risks for mental disorders and make them even more severe.

The abuse of these substances might rise dramatically any symptom of mental illness or might trigger any new one. It can also interfere with medications, making them less efficient.

One of the most complicated consequence is that the patient can develop a dependency on drugs or alcohol. So you should discuss it with your doctor to get more information according to your treatment.

An open conversation with your psychiatrist would bring you significant benefits in connection with your treatment and any abuse. The priority should always be your health, you physically and mentally condition and your safety.

When talking to your psychiatrist or psychologist, it is of great benefit to you that you’re honest and open about your drug or alcohol use. They are not going to judge you, on the contrary, they are willing to provide useful information and guidance Their priority is your health and safety, physically and mentally.

Overall, it might be necessary to highlight that it is your compromise and commitment plus the psychiatrist guidance, what you would need for the treatment to succeed. Try to be organized and follow instructions. Trust the professional and be open to suggestions. If you notice any adverse effect contact your doctor immediately and avoid drinking alcohol or taking drugs while you are under treatment.

When you are conscious about your condition, you have your family and friends support, and you are committed to be better, you will see the benefits and changes quite soon.

Things You Want to Know About Psychiatric Medications

December 14, 2017/in Psychiatry /by access

Nowadays a considerable amount of the world population consumes Psychiatric medications. The most commonly prescribed medicines are the anti-depressants. However, not many people know what they are consuming and how these pills might affect or modify their lives.

This is not the only type of medication that is prescribed or might be found in the market; there are plenty of them. The professional would help you find the one which suits you best according to your conditions.

When you are starting a psychiatric treatment, many questions come to mind as regards medication, and its consequences so let’s try to clarify some relevant aspects of it to understand how it works and what needs to be done while taking it.

Medication

Before taking any kind of pill, you should take into account certain steps that you might follow to make sure you are doing the right thing.

Firstly, you need to talk about the medication with your psychiatrist and comment on any allergy or problem you have. Then, you need to understand how you are going to take medicine. Follow the instructions to be safe.

On the other hand, if you see any adverse effect or problem, please call your doctor right away. The doctor will handle the problem and let you know how to go about it.

Finally, do not take medicines that are not prescribed by your doctor, psychiatrist or health professional. You might risk your health and face severe consequences on your body or mind.

Does Medication Work?

This might be one of the most recurrent question asked. Its effectiveness is tested, and it has to be approved by governmental entities in your country. The test should reveal that it is safe and effective.

Many statistics in the USA showed that 30% of people present improvements quickly. In the case of antidepressant medications, the result showed that 75% of people improved severe symptoms. However, its effectiveness will depend on finding the right medication for each person, and the precise dose needed.

It is important to highlight that medications do not provide a cure for mental disorders, they are meant to treat symptoms. Thus, you might get a good sleep and nutrition, try to avoid alcohol and non-prescribed drugs to recover or rehabilitate properly.

How Long Does it Take to Take Effect?

Depending on the medicine, it might work in hours, or it might take more than a month to have a noticeable outcome. Some other are used to prevent relapses or recurrence, so they work over time.

How Do I Know it is Working?

In general, psychiatrists advice patients and family to set objectives for the treatment. As medications work on specific symptoms (sleep problems or anxiety, etc.), you should talk to your doctor about the symptoms it is supposed to improve.

Improvement could be perceptible if you have clear goals, you follow and monitor the symptoms, so to have better control over the treatment.

May I Suffer a Personality Change?

The answer to this question is “NO,” your personality will not be modified. The effects might change how you feel, but it has nothing to do with your personality. You might feel more concentrated and energetic; your mind would be clearer, all these variations are consequences of an effective treatment.

Could it Affect My Brain?

Medication for this kind of illnesses is designed to affect the part of the brain which is not working correctly, to improve how a patient feels and thinks and allow them to be more like they want to.

However, there might be some unwanted side effects which could derive from the way in which the medication affects the brain. Of course, there is no magic or perfect medication that could offer only benefits and improvement; therefore you would have to balance side effects and benefits to decide if a prescription is the correct one for you.

Am I Crazy if I Took Medication Like This?

Psychiatrists do not refer to mental illnesses as craziness; this is an old-fashion and unfortunate term which keeps on pervade how people think about them.

It is necessary to clarify that mental illnesses are diseases of the brain and mind, so taking medication is part of a plan to manage and re-establish a normal functioning of a person.

Do I Have to Take Pills for the Rest of My Life?

Because you are taking medication now, it does not mean that you have to do it for the rest of your life. Still, you should not stop taking it suddenly without consulting a professional.

A patient should leave medication in a controlled way, reducing the dose as recommended by the doctor and within a trial plan to avoid relapsing or repeated episodes.

Could I Become Addicted to Pills?

Mental illness medication is not addicting, but some tranquilizers or sleep medication might develop tolerance in our body or dependence in some people. This might also happen with pain medication. If it is the case, each professional will know how to handle the situation and will assess you on how to proceed.

May I Gain Weight?

Many patients are concern about their weight gain, especially women and this is because unwanted weight gain is one of the side effects that medication might bring about. Knowing that it is a possibility, weight can be control, and a healthy diet could help to maintain weight. On the other hand, physical activity might contribute not only to weight gaining but also to mental problems.

May I Consume Alcohol While Taking Medication?

Excessive drinking, in general, is not suitable for any person even if you are not under medication. If you experience alcohol problems or drug abuse disorder, abstinence should be your primary priority. Alcohol may interfere with the treatment by altering your blood levels of medication.

For people with no alcohol or drug problem, it is not an inconvenience to have a drink once in awhile; a moderate drinking should not affect the treatment. Be aware that a drink while taking medication might make you feel like you are having two or three.

These are some of the inquiries future patients, patients and family usually ask when facing a psychiatric treatment. You should have all your doubts removed before stating with any medication. Feel free to ask as many questions as you have so a professional can help you understand and feel more confident about your decision.

What are the Benefits of Seeing a Psychiatrist?

December 7, 2017/in Psychiatry /by access

Nowadays, a considerable amount of people is consulting psychiatrists due to anxiety or depression, lack of joy or dissatisfaction in personal relationships, self-sabotaging behavior, avoiding intimacy, personal crisis connected to a failed love relationship, illnesses, death or even job stress. They might also experience uncertainty about future goals or objectives or the sensation of being stuck in life.

If you feel that any of these problems are happening to you, it would be wise to talk to a professional. You may find help and comfort while trying to solve the issue and you would probably gather some tools that might be useful shortly.

Not many people know how therapy works which makes them doubt about making an appointment. How is the session planned? Do I have to tell a stranger about my whole life? However, when you see a psychiatrist, it is not different to other medical consultations.

The psychiatrist would ask you the reason that brought you there, explain how the treatment is going to be and how you are going to accomplish healing. Additionally, the consultation is confidential unless your life is in danger, or you might damage somebody else.

The Psychiatrist

The therapist’s primary goal would be to help you to gain confidence to go back to your “normal” life. So, it is essential to create a stable therapist-patient bond or relationship. An empathic environment should be built. Therefore, your concerns and stressors can be discussed in an open and supportive (non-judgmental) way; you might feel relaxed and safe to share more inquiries during a session.

The purpose is not to provide a straightforward solution to your problems but to help and facilitate tools for you to find insights and solutions while working on complicated matters.

Proper guidance for you.

We know that working on personal issues is not a simple task and it involves deep commitment not only from your side but also from the therapist´s. That is why we are ready to guide you through your recovery process towards a beneficial and positive change and growth.

At first, you might feel a bit uneasy because you are experiencing something new, it might be overwhelming and emotionally challenging to confront specific topics and realities. Besides, you might reveal painful, embarrassing or shameful feelings or emotions, or maybe some troubling memories during the session. All of them would push you to confrontation, exploration, and understanding of yourself to be able to solve them.

The starting point for a good therapy might include tenancy, trust, and comprehension of emotions and feelings to make considerable progress. The transitions might be hard, and you might undergo various stages, but as you will see, with mutual respect and the right psychiatric support and guidance, you will be able to overcome what is affecting you and, at the same time, get favorable tools that will help you in the future.

The psychiatrist must be fully involved and be convinced that the human spirit can grow and change. It would take a profound compromise and perseverance on everyone´s part to continue no matter what, even if you do not immediately see the solution. The most fundamental step to perceive the transformations and improvements is your and the therapist commitment.

The benefits of seeing a psychiatrist.

There might be plenty of benefits for you to start seeing a psychiatrist. Among them, you will identify:

● A significant help to change your personal and, maybe, professional life;
● To confront your fears so you can come to terms with your reality;
● To control and to alleviate your emotions;
● To overcome traumatic experiences and to be able to solve personal issues with guidance and support;
● To developed trust (therapist-patient) and confidence in yourself and with others;
● To return to a healthy status;
● To gain an objective perspective and a professional opinion about your problems to figure out how to solve them.

Does everyone need medication?

It might be necessary to precise that not all the patients need medication to start their treatment. It would depend on the problems you have and the therapist’s opinion. The psychiatrist will facilitate you enough information about the medication so that you can take a balanced decision about the risks, benefits and treatment options.

The professional will work with you to decide if you need the medication or not and which one is appropriate for you. On the other hand, it is a must for you and your psychiatrist to follow the same path, because, in the end, the ultimate decision whether to take medicine or not, will be in your hands.

Today, we can find a wide variety of medications on the market, which had been approved as beneficial for the patient´s recovery. There are several possibilities according to each psychiatric problem. Not only your present situation but your history of medication should be analyzed to assess you correctly.

At this point, you would be working with your psychiatrist, and together you will find the medication or combinations of medicine that is appropriate for your treatment. Every time you have an appointment, your prescription would be evaluated and adjusted if it is necessary, regarding dosing or adding a new one to gain better results.

Each medicine could take between a week or two to have a noticeable effect and a month and a half or two months to have maximal efficiency. Consequently, it would be sensible to employ other types of treatments while waiting for the medicinal results. This kind of therapy might have a significant, as well as, positive outcome on mental illnesses as soon as you start regular sessions and it might be a solid starting point until medication adequately serves its purpose.

Do it for you

If you are experiencing negative thoughts, if you find yourself lost and you cannot see a way out, call a professional. If you are constant and responsible, in a brief period, you would see how your life gets better. With proper medication and a comprehensive guidance, you will find the solution to your problems. Psychiatrists are well trained and have all the elements for you to feel safe and respected to make the best of each session for you.