Studies conducted by the American Psychological Association (APA) have shown that one's quality of life improves in direct proportion to a mind that is healthy and in good shape. According to the National Institute of Mental Health, more than 44 million Americans, of all cultures, ethnic groups and races, live with a mental health illness. Businesses lose more than $70 billion in lost productivity each year due to untreated problems of a psychological and/or psychiatric nature. It has been estimated that twenty-five (25%) of employees take a day off from work to address stress and mental health concerns. Individuals with mental health issues or confronting a mental health crisis may consult a psychiatrist to discuss issues in their lives or seek treatment.
Psychiatrists are physicians (M.D.s) who focus on preventing, diagnosing and treating a wide range of mental illnesses, including addiction and substance abuse. Unlike a psychologist, a psychiatrist is trained in the social, medical, and psychological aspects of behavioral, emotional, and mental problems. Also, psychiatrists tend to be consulted, to a higher extent than psychologists, by patients with severe mental health problems. Psychiatrists are well-placed to perform a general assessment of a problem and to analyze the impact of psychological triggers, psychiatric history, and medical conditions. They have a mastery of psychology and pathophysiology and are skilled in understanding the brain's effect on health and illness. They tend to attribute psychological disturbances to medical or biological causes, rather than to maladaption. They are also trained in outpatient and inpatient treatment, medication management of significant psychiatric problems, and crisis and emergency evaluations. Psychiatrists may also offer quality psychotherapy and counseling to families, individuals, groups, and couples. They gather information about their clients' mental and physical state by 1) finding out about their present and any prior psychological conditions, 2) reviewing their family background and medical history to identify a potentially biological cause for the condition, 3) meeting with family members of the patient to discover more about the latter's life, 4) consulting other mental health professionals who have treated the patient, and 5) ordering diagnostic tests. To craft a treatment plan, a psychiatrist also performs a variety of psychological, medical, and laboratory tests. This type of therapist is authorized to prescribe medications for treating a full range of psychiatric symptoms, and when the prescriptions are ineffective, the treatment plan is adjusted. Psychiatrists determine whether psychotherapy, medication or both are the most suitable approaches for a particular patient. Sometimes, they admit clients to a hospital or refer them to a therapist, whom the former consult for optimal coordination of treatment. Psychiatrists offer a host of services including the following:
- Brain stimulation therapy and electroconvulsive shock therapy (ECT)
- Individual psychotherapy
- Group psychotherapy
- Family psychotherapy
- Marital/couples psychotherapy
- Complete psychiatric and medical evaluation and treatment
- Smoking cessation
- Substance abuse assessment
- Psychiatric services to children and families afflicted with disabilities
- Treatment of dementia and behavioral problems
- Occupational and recreational therapy
- Psychosocial assessments
- Family and patient education
- Diagnosis and treatment of patients with HIV/AIDS
- Emergency evaluation as well as crisis management, counseling, and stabilization
- 24-hour psychiatric care
- Medication management
- Assessment of patients for suicide attempts
- Referral for admission to psychiatric and addiction services (i.e. Treatment4Addiction center in California, one of the nation's premier establishments for substance abuse treatment)
Treatment is available for a multitude of psychiatric problems such as:
- Alcohol dependence and abuse
- Depression
- Psychosis
- Dementia
- Bipolar mood disorder
- Delirium
- Cyclothymic disorder
- Anxiolytic and sedative abuse and dependence
- Social phobias
- Cocaine addiction
- Cannabis disorder
- OCD
- Post-traumatic stress disorder
- Amphetamine abuse
- Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)
- Generalized anxiety
- Adult attention deficit disorder
- Development disabilities
- Panic attacks
- Compulsive gambling
- Adjustment problems
- Trichotillomania (hair pulling)
- Sexual dysfunction
- Sexual addiction
- Schizophrenia
- Delusional disorder
- Dementia
- Sleep disorders
- Autism.
A depression psychiatrist is a specialist in the treatment of different types of depression including the following:
- Substance-related mood disorder;
- Seasonal affective disorder (SAD), which afflicts individuals at certain seasons or times of the year;
- Major depressive disorder, which impairs to a disabling extent individuals' capacity to eat, sleep, function, and work as they ordinarily would;
- Cyclothymic disorder, which is a less aggressive but more enduring type of manic depression;
- Bipolar disorder (or manic-depressive disorder), which is characterized by moods that shift from elation and mania to depression;
- Dysthymic disorder, which is a softer but longer lasting form of major depression; and
- Postpartum depression, which affects women usually between one week and six months following childbirth.
An anxiety psychiatrist focuses on anxiety disorders such as 1) specific phobia, 2) generalized anxiety disorder, 3) post-traumatic stress disorder, 4) obsessive-compulsive disorder, 5) social phobia, and 6) panic disorder. Prospective patients may choose to consult a psychiatrist who specializes in one of the following areas:
- Geriatric psychiatry (for older adults);
- General adult psychiatry;
- Emergency psychiatry;
- Addiction psychiatry;
- Mental retardation psychiatry;
- HIV psychiatry;
- Industrial psychiatry (specializing in issues of drugs or violence in the workplace);
- Child and adolescent psychiatry (for teens or children and their families); or
- Forensic psychiatry, which provides expert testimony on legal issues such as testamentary capacity, guardianship, child custody and visitation, child abuse, legal sanity, and competence of witnesses.
Many psychiatrists are board certified, which demonstrates competence in their specialty. Finally, there are numerous avenues for individuals to find psychiatrist services:
- Contacting their insurance company or HMO;
- Obtaining referrals from other physicians such as their general physician or therapist;
- Consulting databases such as that present on the American Psychiatric Association's website;
Asking friends whose experience with a particular psychiatrist has been a positive one; and soliciting the advice of the psychiatry department of a local medical school.
[page updated February 2009]