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The use of antipsychotic medication is commonly the first line of treatment; however, the effectiveness after treatment is in question.
L-DOPA is effective against reduced affect display and emotional withdrawal, aloofness from society, apathy.
STPD is rarely seen as the primary reason for treatment in a clinical setting, but it often occurs as a comorbid finding with other mental disorders. When patients with STPD are prescribed pharmaceuticals, they are most often prescribed the same drugs used to treat patients suffering from schizophrenia including traditional neuroleptics such as haloperidol and thiothixene. In order to decide which type of medication should be used, Paul Markovitz distinguishes two basic groups of schizotypal patients:
- Schizotypal patients who appear to be almost schizophrenic in their beliefs and behaviors (aberrant perceptions and cognitions) are usually treated with low doses of antipsychotic medications, e.g. thiothixene. However, it must be mentioned that long-term efficacy of neuroleptics is doubtful.
- For schizotypal patients who are more obsessive-compulsive in their beliefs and behaviors, SSRIs like Sertraline appear to be more effective.
Lamotrigine, an anti-convulsant, appears to be helpful in dealing with social isolation.
To date, cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is the best established treatment for a variety of somatoform disorders including somatization disorder. CBT aims to help patients realize their ailments are not catastrophic and to enable them to gradually return to activities they previously engaged in, without fear of "worsening their symptoms". Consultation and collaboration with the primary care physician also demonstrated some effectiveness. The use of antidepressants is preliminary but does not yet show conclusive evidence. Electroconvulsive shock therapy (ECT) has been used in treating somatization disorder among the elderly; however, the results were still debatable with some concerns around the side effects of using ECT. Overall, psychologists recommend addressing a common difficulty in patients with somatization disorder in the reading of their own emotions. This may be a central feature of treatment; as well as developing a close collaboration between the GP, the patient and the mental health practitioner.
According to Theodore Millon, the schizotypal is one of the easiest personality disorders to identify but one of the most difficult to treat with psychotherapy. Persons with STPD usually consider themselves to be simply eccentric, productive, or nonconformist. As a rule, they underestimate maladaptiveness of their social isolation and perceptual distortions. It is not so easy to gain rapport with people who suffer from STPD due to the fact that increasing familiarity and intimacy usually increase their level of anxiety and discomfort. In most cases they do not respond to informality and humor.
Group therapy is recommended for persons with STPD only if the group is well structured and supportive. Otherwise, it could lead to loose and tangential ideation. Support is especially important for schizotypal patients with predominant paranoid symptoms, because they will have a lot of difficulties even in highly structured groups.
There are multiple treatments that can be effective in treating children diagnosed with depression. Psychotherapy and medications are commonly used treatment options. In some research, adolescents showed a preference for psychotherapy rather than antidepressant medication for treatment. For adolescents, cognitive behavioral therapy and interpersonal therapy have been empirically supported as effective treatment options. The use of antidepressant medication in children is often seen as a last resort; however, studies have shown that a combination of psychotherapy and medication is the most effective treatment. Pediatric massage therapy may have an immediate effect on a child's emotional state at the time of the massage, but sustained effects on depression have not been identified.
Treatment programs have been developed that help reduce the symptoms of depression. These treatments focus on immediate symptom reduction by concentrating on teaching children skills pertaining to primary and secondary control. While much research is still needed to confirm this treatment program’s efficacy, one study showed it to be effective in children with mild or moderate depressive symptoms.
Treatment often involves the use of behavioral modification and anticonvulsants, antidepressants and anxiolytics.
Psychiatrist Kantor suggests a treatment approach using psychodynamic, supportive, cognitive, behavioral and interpersonal therapeutic methods. These methods apply to both the Passive–aggressive person and their target victim.
The medication that may be prescribed to someone who has a mental breakdown is based upon the underlying causes, which are sometimes more serious mental disorders. Antidepressants are given to treat depression. Anxiolytics are used for those with anxiety disorders. Antipsychotics are used for schizophrenia and mood stabilizers help with bipolar disorder. Depending upon what caused a person’s mental breakdown, any of these treatments can be helpful for them.
There are several different kinds of therapy that a patient can receive. The most common type of therapy is counseling. This is where the patient is able to talk about whatever is on their mind without worrying about any judgments. Psychotherapy is a very common type of therapy that addresses the current problems in someone’s life and helps them to deal with them. Past experiences may also be explored in this type of therapy. In psychoanalysis therapy, the main focus is a patient’s past experiences so that they can confront these issues and prevent breakdowns in the future. Cognitive behavioral therapy explores how a person behaves and what they are thinking and feeling. If there is anything negative in these three different categories, then this therapy will try to turn them around into positives. Hypnotherapy is where hypnosis is performed and used to help the patient relax. Hypnosis can also be used to figure out why a person acts or feels a certain way, by examining past events that may have caused the breakdown. Expressive therapy focuses on how the patient is able to express their feelings. If the patient has a hard time doing this, expression through the arts is highly recommended. There is also aromatherapy, which consists of herbs to help the patient relax and to try to relieve stress. Yoga and massage may also be included in this therapy that will help the muscles to relax. Meditation is also often recommended. All of these therapies help a person to relax and de-stress and also help to prevent future breakdowns.
Most of the treatments for thought insertion are not specific to the symptom, but rather the symptom is treated through treatment of the psychopathology that causes it. However, one case report considers a way to manage thought insertion through performing thoughts as motor actions of speech. In other words, the patient would speak his thoughts out loud in order to re-give himself the feeling of agency as he could hear himself speaking and then contributing the thought to himself.
Treatment for perfectionism can be approached from many therapeutic directions. Some examples of psychotherapy include: cognitive-behavioral therapy (the challenging of irrational thoughts and formation of alternative ways of coping and thinking), psychoanalytic therapy (an analysis of underlying motives and issues), group therapy (where two or more clients work with one or more therapists about a specific issue, this is beneficial for those who feel as if they are the only one experiencing a certain problem), humanistic therapy (person-centered therapy where the positive aspects are highlighted), and self-therapy (personal time for the person where journaling, self-discipline, self-monitoring, and honesty with self are essential). Cognitive-behavioral therapy has been shown to successfully help perfectionists in reducing social anxiety, public self-consciousness, and perfectionism. By using this approach, a person can begin to recognize his or her irrational thinking and find an alternative way to approach situations. Cognitive-behavioral therapy is intended to help the person understand that it is okay to make mistakes sometimes and that those mistakes can become lessons learned.
Individuals suffering from endogenous depression require treatment plans that focus on the internal, cognitive thought processes since internal stressors are the root of somatic symptoms. Individual cognitive therapy (ICT) is therefore a common treatment used to gain insight to the individual's internal conflicts or thoughts that are motivating their distressing symptoms. Once the cause of the symptoms are identified, sessions are used to develop new coping skills, behavior modification, and changes in beliefs.
As preventative measures, pharmaceuticals such as SSRI's and antidepressants may also be utilized to avoid further development or progression to Major Depressive Disorder. There have been few treatments targeted specifically toward Endogenous Depression; therefore, symptoms are often managed similarly to Major Depressive Disorder. One such treatment is electroconvulsive therapy (ECT). ECT is used as a treatment option for endogenous depression in adults, however, practitioners avoid the use of ECT in young adolescents due to rates of injury.
Approaches to the treatment of ODD include parent management training, individual psychotherapy, family therapy, cognitive behavioral therapy, and social skills training. According to the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, treatments for ODD are tailored specifically to the individual child, and different treatment techniques are applied for pre-schoolers and adolescents. Several preventative programs have had a positive effect on those at high risk for ODD. Both home visitation and programs such as Head Start have shown some effectiveness in preschool children. Social skills training, parent management training, and anger management programs have been used as prevention programs for school-age children at risk for ODD. For adolescents at risk for ODD, cognitive interventions, vocational training and academic tutoring have shown preventative effectiveness. There is also limited evidence that the atypical antipsychotic medication risperidone decreases aggression and conduct problems in youth with disruptive behavioral disorders, such as ODD.
Many people with sexual obsessions are alarmed that they seem to lose their sex drive. People with OCD may see this as evidence that they no longer have normal sexual attractions and are in fact deviant in some way. Some may wonder if medication is the answer to the problem. Medication is a double-edged sword. Drugs specifically for erectile dysfunction (i.e. Viagra, Cialis) are not the answer for people with untreated OCD. The sexual organs are working properly, but it is the anxiety disorder that interferes with normal libido.
Medications specifically for OCD (typically SSRI medications) will help alleviate the anxiety but will also cause some sexual dysfunction in about a third of patients. For many the relief from the anxiety is enough to overcome the sexual problems caused by the medication. For others, the medication itself makes sex truly impossible. This may be a temporary problem, but if it persists a competent psychiatrist can often adjust the medications to overcome this side-effect.
There is no cure for individuals with DES, but there are therapies to help them cope with their symptoms. DES can affect a number of functions in the brain and vary from person to person. Because of this variance, it is suggested that the most successful therapy would include multiple methods. Researchers suggest that a number of factors in the executive functioning need to be improved, including self-awareness, goal setting, planning, self-initiation, self-monitoring, self-inhibition, flexibility, and strategic behaviour.
One method for individuals to improve in these areas is to help them plan and carry out actions and intentions through a series of goals and sub-goals. To accomplish this, therapists teach patients a three-step model called the General Planning Approach. The first step is Information and Awareness, in which the patients are taught about their own problems and shown how this affects their lives. The patients are then taught to monitor their executive functions and begin to evaluate them. The second stage, Goal Setting and Planning, consists of patients making specific goals, as well as devising a plan to accomplish them. For example, patients may decide they will have lunch with a friend (their goal). They are taught to write down which friend it may be, where they are going for lunch, what time they are going, how they will get there, etc. (sub-goals). They are also taught to make sure the steps go in the correct order. The final stage, named Initiation, Execution, and Regulation, requires patients to implement their goals in their everyday lives. Initiation can be taught through normal routines. The first step can cue the patient to go to the next step in their plan. Execution and regulation are put into action with reminders of how to proceed if something goes wrong in the behavioural script. This treatment method has resulted in improved daily executive functioning, however no improvements were seen on formal executive functioning tests.
Since planning is needed in many activities, different techniques have been used to improve this deficit in patients with DES. Autobiographical memories can be used to help direct future behaviour. You can draw on past experiences to know what to do in the future. For example, when you want to take a bus, you know from past experience that you have to walk to the bus stop, have the exact amount of change, put the change in the slot, and then you can go find a seat. Patients with DES seem to not be able to use this autobiographical memory as well as a normal person. Training for DES patients asks them to think of a specific time when they did an activity previously. They are then instructed to think about how they accomplished this activity. An example includes "how would you plan a holiday". Patients are taught to think of specific times they went on a holiday and then to think how they may have planned these holidays. By drawing on past experiences patients were better able to make good decisions and plans.
Cognitive Analytic Therapy (CAT) has also been used to help those with DES. Because individuals with this syndrome have trouble integrating information into their actions it is often suggested that they have programmed reminders delivered to a cell phone or pager. This helps them remember how they should behave and discontinue inappropriate actions. Another method of reminding is to have patients write a letter to themselves. They can then read the letter whenever they need to. To help patients remember how to behave, they may also create a diagram. The diagram helps organize their thoughts and shows the patient how they can change their behaviour in everyday situations.
The use of auditory stimuli has been examined in the treatment of DES. The presentation of auditory stimuli causes an interruption in current activity, which appears to aid in preventing "goal neglect" by increasing the patients' ability to monitor time and focus on goals. Given such stimuli, subjects no longer performed below their age group average IQ.
People with sexual obsessions can devote an excessive amount of time and energy attempting to understand the obsessions. They usually decide they are having these problems because they are defective in some way, and they are often too ashamed to seek help. Because sexual obsessions are not as well-described in the research literature, many therapists may fail to properly diagnose OCD in a client with primary sexual obsessions. Mental health professionals unfamiliar with OCD may even attribute the symptoms to an unconscious wish (typically in the case of psychoanalysts or psychodynamic therapists), sexual identity crisis, or hidden paraphilia. Such a misdiagnosis only panics an already distressed individual. Fortunately, sexual obsessions respond to the same type of effective treatments available for other forms of OCD: cognitive-behavioral therapy and serotonergic antidepressant medications (SSRIs). People with sexual obsessions may, however, need a longer and more aggressive course of treatment.
Research on treating BDD is limited. Yet anti-depressant medication, such as selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), and cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) are considered effective. SSRIs can help relieve obsessive-compulsive and delusional traits, while cognitive-behavioral therapy can help patients recognize faulty thought patterns. Before treatment, it can help to provide psychoeducation, as with self-help books and support websites.
There are three common types of talk therapy. These can assist people to live more fully and have a better life. Men are encouraged to open up more emotionally and communicate their personal distress, while women are encouraged to be assertive of their own strengths
Because of reduced levels of trust, there can be challenges in treating PPD. However, psychotherapy, antidepressants, antipsychotics and anti-anxiety medications can play a role when an individual is receptive to intervention.
When pseudoneurotic schizophrenia was still being utilized as a diagnostic term, doctors were expected to be able to magically cure patients. Patients usually had very little understanding of themselves and the complexity of their illness. They were willing to employ any process in order to maintain mental stability. Their perception of mental stability, however, was also impaired, which made it much more difficult to make proper, helpful medication prescriptions.
Patients would often misuse medication in order to receive attention from their families. They would describe the dosage and effects of the medicine in some strange demeanor to demonstrate that their illness was physical rather than psychological. In like manner, taking medication also kept doctors concerned about the possibility of the patient developing substance dependence and/or drug addiction. Patients used this to get attention and sympathy from others.
Discontinuation syndrome is often prevented by taking medication as directed, and when discontinuing, doing so gradually. When discontinuing an antidepressant with a short half-life, switching to a drug with a longer half-life (e.g. fluoxetine or citalopram) and then discontinuing from that drug can decrease the likelihood and severity of symptoms.
Treatment is dependent on the severity of the discontinuation reaction and whether or not further antidepressant treatment is warranted. In cases where further antidepressant treatment is required then the only step required is restarting the antidepressant; this is usually the case following patient noncompliance with the drug. If antidepressants are no longer required, treatment depends on symptom severity. Mild reactions may only require reassurance. Moderate cases may require symptom management. If symptoms of discontinuation are severe, or do not respond to symptom management, the antidepressant can be reinstated and then withdrawn more cautiously. In rare but severe cases, hospitalization may be required.
Cognitive-behavioural therapy (CBT) is a frequently suggested treatment for executive dysfunction, but has shown limited effectiveness. However, a study of CBT in a group rehabilitation setting showed a significant increase in positive treatment outcome compared with individual therapy. Patients' self-reported symptoms on 16 different ADHD/executive-related items were reduced following the treatment period.
A problem with culture-bound syndromes is that they are resistant to Western-style medicine.} The standard Japanese treatment for taijin kyofusho is Morita therapy, developed by Shoma Morita in the 1910s as a treatment for the Japanese mental disorders taijin kyofusho and shinkeishitsu (nervousness). The original regimen involved patient isolation, enforced bed rest, diary writing, manual labor, and lectures on the importance of self-acceptance and positive endeavor. Since the 1930s, the treatment has been modified to include out-patient and group treatments. This modified version is known as neo-Morita therapy. Medications have also gained acceptance as a treatment option for taijin kyofusho. Other treatments include systematic desensitization, which includes slowly exposing one self to the fear, and learning relaxation skills, to extinguish fear and anxiety.
Milnacipran, a serotonin–norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor (SNRI), is currently used in the treatment of taijin kyofusho and has been shown to be efficacious for the related social anxiety disorder. The primary aspect of treating this disorder is getting patients to focus their attention on their body parts and sensations.
Neurosis is a class of functional mental disorders involving chronic distress but neither delusions nor hallucinations. The term is no longer used by the professional psychiatric community in the United States, having been eliminated from the "Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders" in 1980 with the publication of DSM III. It is still used in the .
Neurosis should not be mistaken for psychosis, which refers to a loss of touch with reality. Neither should it be mistaken for neuroticism, a fundamental personality trait proposed in the big Five personality traits theory.
A self-disorder, also called ipseity disturbance, is a psychological phenomenon of disruption or diminishing of a person's sense of minimal (or basic) self. The sense of minimal self refers to the very basic sense of having experiences that are one's own; it has no properties, unlike the more extended sense of self, the narrative self, which is characterized by the person's reflections on themselves as a person, things they like, their identity, and other aspects that are the result of reflection on one's self. Disturbances in the sense of minimal self, as measured by the Examination of Anomalous Self-Experience (EASE), aggregate in the schizophrenia spectrum disorders, to include schizotypal personality disorder, and distinguish them from other conditions such as psychotic bipolar disorder and borderline personality disorder.
A monothematic delusion is a delusional state that concerns only one particular topic. This is contrasted by what is sometimes called "multi-thematic" or "polythematic" delusions where the person has a range of delusions (typically the case of schizophrenia). These disorders can occur within the context of schizophrenia or dementia or they can occur without any other signs of mental illness. When these disorders are found outside the context of mental illness, they are often caused by organic dysfunction as a result of traumatic brain injury, stroke, or neurological illness.
People who experience these delusions as a result of organic dysfunction often do not have any obvious intellectual deficiency nor do they have any other symptoms. Additionally, a few of these people even have some awareness that their beliefs are bizarre, yet they cannot be persuaded that their beliefs are false.