by Mike Nichols on September 16, 2008 · 6 comments
There is an ongoing debate about what constitutes shyness and at what point it turns into Social Phobia (also known as Social Anxiety Disorder).
Some, such as Christopher Lane, in his “Shyness: How Normal Behavior Became a Sickness” say that normal shyness has been medicalized by an over-enthusiastic drug industry and the psychiatrists who wrote the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM). He holds that what used to be considered a virtue and the sign of modesty and a contemplative mind, has become a diagnosable mental illness.
Others believe that extreme shyness is a scourge on the American population, and that it is the third largest of the mental disorders, after only depression and alcoholism. They hold that undiagnosed Social Phobia causes untold suffering and millions of lives in self-imposed chains — all treatable with a short course of therapy.
This post investigates shyness, Social Phobia, and the difference between the two. It lists the triggers and reactions of shyness, then makes clear the distinction between shyness and Social Phobia.
[Read the entire article...]
Tagged as:
Mental Health Professionals,
SAD - Social Phobia,
Shy,
Shyness
by Mike Nichols on September 10, 2008 · 3 comments
Stress seems to be just another component of the modern life.
It is so common that it is treated as a joke by standup comedians, in tv sitcoms and in the print media. Here’s one for you, brought to you by one of the prominent stress reduction gurus:
- Picture yourself near a stream.
- Birds are softly chirping in the crisp, cool, mountain air.
- No one knows your secret place.
- You are in total seclusion from that hectic place called “the world”.
- The soothing sound of a gentle waterfall fills the air with a cascade of serenity.
- The water is clear.
- You can easily make out the face of the person you’re holding under the water…
Can you relate to this joke? It’s funny because you can picture being at the breaking point, with the person causing so much stress leaving the picture permanently.
But stress is no laughing matter. It can ruin your physical and mental health. It can ruin your relationships and make your life a living hell. Following are lists of signs of stress to watch out for, along with information on how stress can affect your body and mind.
[Read the entire article...]
Tagged as:
Bipolar,
Depression,
GAD - General Anxiety Disorder,
Mental Health Professionals,
OCD - Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder,
Panic Attacks,
Panic Disorder,
PTSD - Post Traumatic Stress Disorder,
SAD - Social Phobia,
Stress
Do you treat your mental health issue with medication only?
If you do, you are part of a growing trend among mental health care providers.
This shift to the sole use of medication to treat mental health problems is detailed in a study released this month in the Archives of General Psychology. The authors find that market forces, primarily insurance reimbursements, are forcing psychiatrists to limit their time with patients to 15-minute medication maintenance visits rather than also providing psychotherapy.
The percentage of patients who received both medication and psychotherapy from their psychiatrists fell to 28.9 percent in 2004-05, from 44.4 percent in 1996-97.
The findings are expected to intensify a debate over the increased medicalization of psychiatric care. The debate is about the shifting emphasis on the biology of mental illness, as opposed to the processes of the mind addressed in psychotherapy. This debate is seen in the mental health stances of the two Presidential candidates. McCain’s plan emphasizes the use of medications over psychotherapy, while Obama’s seeks a balance between the two.
[Read the entire article...]
Tagged as:
Anxiety Disorder,
Medications,
Mental Health Professionals,
Panic Disorder,
Psychiatrist,
PTSD - Post Traumatic Stress Disorder,
SAD - Social Phobia,
Specific Phobias
Your heart is pounding, you are trembling, and you feel that you’re going to die!
Are you having a panic attack? How do you know?
And what can you do to reduce the symptoms like choking or nausea?
There’s a lot of confusion over what the symptoms a panic attack actually are. Much of this confusion can be attributed to the media’s misrepresentations of panic attacks and the lack of real knowledge by the general public. This leads to clinomorphisms in which a person will exaggerate their symptoms and call it a panic attack, when all it is is a moment of great surprise or unpleasantness.
The “real” symptoms of a panic attack are detailed in this post, along with a list of suggestions for ways to deal with it while it’s happening. They are excerpted from my full article on panic attacks found under the resources in the right sidebar.
[Read the entire article...]
Tagged as:
Anxiety Disorder,
Mental Health Professionals,
Panic Attacks,
Panic Disorder,
SAD - Social Phobia
Television programs like “In Treatment,” “Frasier,” and “The Sopranos” may discourage people from seeking psychological treatment, a new study shows.
Frasier Crane and his brother, Niles both practiced psychiatry on their popular NBC sitcom “Frasier.” Mob boss Tony Soprano had his therapist on HBO’s hit show “The Sopranos.” And HBO has even made therapy the focus of two recent shows — “Tell Me You Love Me” and “In Treatment.”
The research suggests that television’s portrayal of psychological counseling has a profound influence on audiences. Douglas Gentile, one of the study’s authors, said,
Therapists … often are portrayed as buffoons. That’s either by being the jokester, like Frasier, or by being the butt of jokes. In either case, these are not positive portrayals. They do not show the skill, expertise and ethics of professional therapists.
[Read the entire article...]
Tagged as:
Mental Health Professionals,
Stigma,
Television
Recent research shows that 95 percent of patients diagnosed with Social Phobia originally went to the doctor for treatment of another disorder.
In addition, it was found that a majority of psychiatry outpatients have more than one mental disorder, and more than one-third have at least three disorders. Most patients had two current diagnoses.
Of the twelve most common disorders, major Depression was the most frequent diagnosis, with Social Phobia being diagnosed in 25 percent of the patients. The highest rate for comorbid (simultaneous presence of two or more chronic conditions) disorders was found for patients with a principal diagnosis of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and Bipolar Disorder.
[Read the entire article...]
Tagged as:
Anxiety Disorder,
Mental Health Professionals,
SAD - Social Phobia
Just type “anxiety cure” into Google – you will come up with 343,000 hits. Typing in “panic attack cure” gets you 782,000 hits. The top of Google’s search results and the sidebar will be filled with advertisements for “cures” for Anxiety Disorder and panic attacks.
These “cures” claim to make Anxiety Disorder and panic attacks go away for good in much in the same way they might offer to cure hookworm. A cure by definition is an elimination of a disease and its symptoms. These companys’ advertisements imply that the sufferer is never going to have symptoms again, that once they have gone through their regimen, Anxiety Disorder and panic attacks will be gone permanently.
Anxiety and panic attack sufferers are desperate people, and I fear that too many of them are taken in by such dangerous claims.
These highly-advertised “cures” reek of snake oil to me.
[Read the entire article...]
Tagged as:
Advertisements,
Anxiety Disorder,
Mental Health,
Mental Health Professionals,
Panic Attacks
There are six basic types of mental health professionals found in the United States, with dozens of variations on these types.
Naturally, this produces a great deal of confusion when it’s time to consult one! Do you go to a counsellor, a psychiatrist, or a psychologist? What are the qualifications of the psychiatric nurse you are assigned to at the clinic? You can get medications from a psychiatrist but no therapy, and therapy from a psychologist and no medications. It can be very frustrating.
The main differences between the types of mental health professions is what kind of treatment they focus on or specialize in, their educational background, and the types of licensing required for their profession. Following is a very brief synopsis of the six main types of mental health professionals you are likely to encounter:
[Read the entire article...]
Tagged as:
Clinical Social Worker,
Licensed Professional Counselor,
Marriage and Family Therapists,
Mental Health Professionals,
Physician,
Psychiatric Nurse,
Psychologist
