Mental Health
Mental health is defined as a state of well-being in which every individual realizes his or her own potential, can cope with the normal stresses of life, can work productively and fruitfully, and is able to make a contribution to her or his community.
01
Have you ever seen a patient with a condition like mine?
Although presentation of an illness may have individual nuances most mental illnesses have a clear diagnostic criterion that is accepted internationally. Every day we see psychiatric conditions that we have seen before. Explaining that we have come across an illness before and the outcomes is a central part of reassuring our patients that their condition is not unique and that others have had it before.
However, even when we are dealing with the commonest conditions, we endeavor to treat our patients as unique individuals deserving our undivided attention and the highest professional care we can muster.
02
Will I ever get well?
The answer is an emphatic yes! People do get well. People do recover from mental disorders. Some conditions may take a while before one gets well so it is important to faithfully follow the treatment regime.
Other conditions are chronic (that is they last a long time or tend to recur frequently). These need ongoing intervention like ongoing maintenance treatment. But even in these cases, people improve significantly and their quality of life can be greatly enhanced.
.
03
Why do i need a Psychiatrist?
Minor mental disorders can be competently handled by medical professionals, counselors and psychologists. However, major psychiatric illness can attain such severity that the expertise of a psychiatrist is required.Psychological distress from various causes can disrupt one from normal life like lack of sleep, inability to work or to even relate with loved ones. Consulting a psychiatrist will give relief. Clients in psychotherapy sometimes benefit significantly from prescriptions that alleviate the emotional distress in order to facilitate further movement in psychotherapy.
One may also be referred by a teacher, doctor, employer, counselor, psychologist or a court of law for evaluation by a psychiatrist. This evaluation leads to a report to the referring person with an expert opinion for the benefit of the one referred to the psychiatrist. Mental illness is treatable! No one should suffer unnecessarily!
.
04
Will I be on medication for the rest of my life?
Many mental health conditions are self limiting so when the condition has run its course there is no need for medication. An example of this is post traumatic stress disorder. Other conditions are cyclical or recurring. They occur and after treatment one gets well but the condition may recur after say two years. In this case the conditions are treated when the disease is active as long as one is equipped with enough psycho-education to pick up the recurrence in its earliest stage.
On the other hand there are conditions that need aggressive treatment till one improves and thereafter one may require maintenance medication. A good example for this is epilepsy and some of the severer mental illness.
The length of treatment depends on the condition being treated. We advise that candid discussion with your health provider.
05
How safe is what I say in this group?(in support groups)?
Confidentiality is a vital aspect of the treatment process. All information shared with your consultant will thus be treated with utmost confidentiality. There are times that your consultant may need to confer with others within the practice in our effort to provide you excellent care. Even then, your name shall not be disclosed nor information shared in such a manner that the others can identify the client.However, consultants have an ethical and legal obligation to break confidentiality if any of the following occur:
1) He/she believes that you intend to do serious harm to an identifiable person;
2) He/she believes that you are at serious risk to physically harm yourself;
3) He/she suspects abuse of a child or of an elderly or helpless adult;
4) He/she receives a court order;
5) You are seeking treatment for the purpose of avoiding detection or apprehension, or for the purpose ofenablin anyone to commit a crime;
6) You are under the age of 16 and are the victim of a crime.