PSYCHOTERAPY

Psychotherapy

          Psychotherapy is a general term for treating mental health problems by talking with a psychiatrist, psychologist or other mental health provider.

           During psychotherapy, you learn about your condition and your moods, feelings, thoughts and behaviors. Psychotherapy helps you learn how to take control of your life and respond to challenging situations with healthy coping skills.

            There are many specific types of psychotherapy, each with its own approach. The type of psychotherapy that's right for you depends on your individual situation. Psychotherapy is also known as talk therapy, counseling, psychosocial therapy or, simply, therapy.

sychotherapy can be helpful in treating most mental health problems, including:

• Anxiety disorders, such as obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), phobias, panic disorder or post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
• Mood disorders, such as depression or bipolar disorder
• Addictions, such as alcoholism, drug dependence or compulsive gambling
• Eating disorders, such as anorexia or bulimia
• Personality disorders, such as borderline personality disorder or dependent personality disorder
• Schizophrenia or other disorders that cause detachment from reality (psychotic disorders)

Not everyone who benefits from psychotherapy is diagnosed with a mental illness. Psychotherapy can help with a number of life's stresses and conflicts that can affect anyone. For example, it may help you:

• Resolve conflicts with your partner or someone else in your life
• Relieve anxiety or stress due to work or other situations
• Cope with major life changes, such as divorce, the death of a loved one or the loss of a job
• Learn to manage unhealthy reactions, such as road rage or passive-aggressive behavior
• Come to terms with an ongoing or serious physical health problem, such as diabetes, cancer or ongoing (chronic) pain
• Recover from physical or sexual abuse or witnessing violence
• Cope with sexual problems, whether they're due to a physical or psychological cause
• Sleep better, if you have trouble getting to sleep or staying asleep (insomnia) For example, it may help you:
  • Resolve conflicts with your partner or someone else in your life
  • Relieve anxiety or stress due to work or other situations
  • Cope with major life changes, such as divorce, the death of a loved one or the loss of a job
  • Learn to manage unhealthy reactions, such as road rage or passive-aggressive behavior
  • Come to terms with an ongoing or serious physical health problem, such as diabetes, cancer or ongoing (chronic) pain
  • Recover from physical or sexual abuse or witnessing violence
  • Cope with sexual problems, whether they're due to a physical or psychological cause
  • Sleep better, if you have trouble getting to sleep or staying asleep (insomnia)

PUNISHMENT

PUNISHMENT

Effective discipline helps children learn to control their behavior so that they act according to their ideas of what is right and wrong, not because they fear punishment. For example, they are honest because they think it is wrong to be dishonest, not because they are afraid of getting caught.

The purpose of punishment is to stop a child from doing what you don't want - and using a painful or unpleasant method to stop him.

There are basically four kinds of punishment

• physical punishment - slapping, spanking, switching, paddling, and using a belt or hair brush.
• verbal punishment - shaming, ridiculing, using cruel words, saying "I don't love you."
• withholding rewards - "You can't watch TV if you don't do your homework."
• penalties - "You broke the window so you will have to pay for it with money from your allowance."

The first two kinds of punishment, physical and verbal, are not considered to be effective discipline methods. The other two, withholding rewards and giving penalties, can be used either as effective discipline methods or as punishment - depending on how parents administer them.

Physical punishment usually doesn't work for several reasons. First, it makes the child hate himself and others. Physical punishment makes the child think that there must be something awfully wrong with him to be treated so badly. If children think they are "bad," then they will act "bad." A vicious cycle is formed. The child who has been treated harshly has no reason to be good. Or he may be good just to keep from being punished and not learn to be good because he thinks it is the right thing to do.

Children who have been spanked feel that they have paid for their misbehavior and are free to misbehave again. In other words, spanking frees the child from feelings of remorse which are needed to prevent future misbehavior.

Parents who use physical punishment are setting an example of using violence to settle problems or solve conflicts, Children imitate their parents' behavior. When parents use physical punishment, children are more likely to use violent acts to settle their conflicts with others.

Another disadvantage of using physical punishment is that parents have to find other discipline methods when the child becomes as tall and as strong as the parent! Why not start using effective discipline methods when the child is young?

 Where reward and punishment focus on the child, encouragement and reality discipline target the act. Reward and punishment teaches the child to be "good" as long as we are looking. When rewards are our chief way of motivating children we run the risk of creating "carrot seekers": children who are always looking for and expecting a reward every time they do something good or right. If we give a child money for making his bed this week, he'll wonder where his money is next week. Instead of being self-motivated by a desire to cooperate or help other family members, we have taught the child to look to us for his source of motivation.

Effective Discipline . . .

• Helps the child learn self-control
• Can be used with teenagers
• Builds the child's self-esteem
• Sets a good example of effective ways to solve problems.

Harsh Punishment . . .

• Teaches the child to deceive parents
• Won't work with teenagers
• Tears down self-esteem
• Teaches the child that violence is an acceptable way to solve problems.

PSYCHOLOGIST

              

           A psychologist evaluates, diagnoses, treats, and studies behavior and mental processes. Some psychologists, such as clinical and counseling psychologists, provide mental health care, and some psychologists, such as social or organizational psychologists conduct research and provide consultation services.

• Clinical, counseling,and school psychologists who work with patients in a variety of therapeutic contexts (contrast with psychiatrists, who are physician specialists).
• Industrial/organizational and community psychologists who apply psychological research, theories and techniques to "real-world" problems, questions and issues in business, industry, social benefit organizations,and government.
• Academics conducting psychological research or teaching psychology in a college or university;

            There are many different types of psychologists, as is reflected by the 56 different divisions of the American Psychological Association (APA). Psychologists are generally described as being either "applied" or "research-oriented". The common terms used to describe this central division in psychology are "scientists" or "scholars" (those who conduct research) and "practitioners" or "professionals" (those who apply psychological knowledge). The training models endorsed by the APA require that applied psychologists be trained as both researchers and practitioners,and that they possess advanced degrees.

Most typically, people encounter psychologists and think of the discipline as involving the work of clinical psychologist or counseling psychologists. While counseling and psychotherapy are common activities for psychologists, these applied fields are just one branch in the larger domain of psychology. Research and teaching comprise a major role among psychologists. Technological advances in the future may increase the usage of computerized testing and assessment services in order to do some of the jobs of psychologists, including recognizing mental disorders.

PSYCHOLOGIST

                                                                     PSYCHOLOGIST

 psychotherapy, treatment of mental and emotional disorders using psychological methods. Psychotherapy, thus, does not include physiological interventions, such as drug therapy or electroconvulsive theraphy  although it maybe used in combination with such methods. This type of treatment has been used in one form or another through the ages in many societies, but it was not until the late 19th cent. that it received scientific impetus, primarily under the leadership of Sigmund Freud. Although Freud's theoretical formulations have come sharply into question, his treatment method involving individualized client-psychologist sessions has been used in modified forms for years (see psychoanalysis
).

Behavior therapy aims to help the patient eliminate undesirable habits orirrational fears through conditioning. Techniques include systematic desensitization, particularly for the treatment of clients with irrational anxieties or fears, and aversive conditioning, which uses negative stimuli to end bad habits.Humanistic therapy tends to be more optimistic, basing its treatment on the theory that individuals have a natural inclination to strive toward self-fulfillment.Therapists such as Carl Rogers and Abraham Maslow used a highly interactive client-therapist relationship, compelling clients to realize exactly what they are saying or how they are behaving, in order to foster a sense of selfawareness.Cognitive therapies try to show the client that certain, usually negative, thoughtsare irrational, with the goal of restructuring such thoughts into positive,constructive ideas. Such methods include Albert Ellis's rationalemotive therapy,where the therapist argues with the client about his negative ideas; and Aaron Beck's cognitive restructuring therapy, in which the therapist works with the client to set attainable goals. Other forms of therapy stress helping patients to examine their own ideas about themselves.

Psychotherapy may be brief, lasting just a few sessions, or it may extend overmany years. More than one client may be involved, as in marriage or family counseling, or a number of individuals, as in group psychotherapy.

PSYCHOLOGICAL TESTING

                                                            Psychological Tests 

Definition

Psychological tests are written, visual, or verbal evaluations administered to assess the cognitive and emotional functioning of children and adults.

Purpose

Psychological tests are used to assess a variety of mental abilities and attributes, including achievement and ability, personality, and neurological functioning.

Achievement and ability tests

For children, academic achievement, ability, and intelligence tests may be used as a tool in school placement, in determining the presence of a learning disability or a developmental delay, in identifying giftedness, or in tracking intellectual development. Intelligence testing may be used with adults to determine vocational ability (e.g., in career counseling) or to assess adult intellectual ability in the classroom.

Personality tests

Personality tests are administered for a wide variety of reasons, from diagnosing psychopathology (e.g., personality disorder, depressive disorder) to screening job candidates. They may be used in an educational or vocational setting to determine personality strengths and weaknesses, or in the legal system to evaluate parolees.

Neuropsychological tests

Patients who have experienced a traumatic brain injury, brain damage, or organic neurological problems (for example,dementia) are administered neuropsychological tests to assess their level of functioning and identify areas of mental impairment. They may also be used to evaluate the progress of a patient who has undergone treatment orrehabilitation for aneurological injury or illness. In addition, certain neuropsychological measures may be used to screen children for developmental delays and/or learning disabilities.

Precautions

Psychological testing requires a clinically trained examiner. All psychological tests should be administered, scored, and interpreted by a trained professional, preferably a psychologistor psychiatrist with expertise in the appropriate area.

Psychological tests are only one element of a psychological assessment. They should never be used alone as the sole basis for a diagnosis. A detailed history of the test subject and are view of psychological, medical, educational, or other relevant records are required to lay the groundwork for interpreting the results of any psychological measurement.

Cultural and language differences in the test subject may affect test performance and may result in inaccurate test results. The test administrator should be informed before psychological testing begins if the test taker is not fluent in English and/or belongs to a minority culture. In addition, the subject's motivation and motives may also affect test results.

Description

Psychological tests are formalized measures of mental functioning. Most are objective and quantifiable; however, certain projective tests may involve some level of subjective interpretation. Also known as inventories, measurements, questionnaires, and scales,psychological tests are administered in a variety of settings, including preschools, primary and secondary schools, colleges and universities, hospitals, outpatient healthcare settings,social agencies, prisons, and employment or human resource offices. They come in a variety of formats, including written, verbal, and computer administered.

Personality tests

Personality tests and inventories evaluate the thoughts, emotions, attitudes, and behavioral traits that comprise personality. The results of these tests determine an individual's personality strengths and weaknesses, and may identify certain disturbances in personality,or psychopathology. Tests such as the Minnesota multiphasic personality inventory MMPI-2)and the Millon clinical multiaxial Inventory III (MMPI-III), are used to screen individuals for specific psychopathologies or emotional problems.

Another type of personality test is the projective personality assessment. A projective test asks a subject to interpret some ambiguous stimuli, such as a series of inkblots. The subject's responses provide insight into his or her thought processes and personality traits.For example, the Rorschach inkblot test and the Holtzman ink blot test (HIT) use a series of inkblots that the test subject is asked to identify. Another projective assessment, theThematic apperception test (TAT), asks the subject to tell a story about a series of pictures.Some consider projective tests to be less reliable than objective personality tests. If the examiner is not well-trained in psychometric evaluation, subjective interpretations may affect the evaluation of these tests.

           

PSYCHOANALYSIS

                                                   PSYCHOANALYSIS
                  

              A method of treating mental illness,origination with Sigmund Fred,in which a psychiatrist (analyst) helps a patient discover and confront the causes of the illness.Many psychiatrists believe that these causes are buried deep in the unconscious of the patient and can be brought to the surface through such techniques as hypnosis and the analysis of dreams.Psychoanalysis emphasizes that mental illness usually originates in repressed sexual desires or traumas in childhood.   

              Method of treating mental disorders that emphasizes the probing of unconscious mental processes. It is based on the psychoanalytic theory devised by sigmund freud in Vienna in the late 19th and early 20th century. It calls for patients to engage in free associated of ideas, speaking to therapists about anything that comes to mind.Dreams and slips of the tongue are examined as a key to the workings of the unconscious mind, and the “work” of therapy is to uncover the tensions existing between the instinctual drive of the ID,the perceptions and actions of the EGO,and the censorship imposed by the morality of the superego.Careful attention is paid to early childhood experiences (especially those with a sexual dimension), the memory of which may have been repressed because of guilt or trauma; recalling and analyzing these experiences is thought to help free patients from the anxiety and neuroses caused by repression as well as from more serious illnesses known as psychoses (see neurosis,psychosis). Some of Freud's early associates, notably Carl Gustav Jung and Alfred Adler,rejected his theories on many points and devised alternative methods of analysis. Other important figures in psychoanalysis, including Erik Erikson,Karen Horner,and Erich Fromm, accepted the basic Freudian framework but contributed their own additions or modifications.

MEDICAL DEFINITION OF PSYCHOANALYSIS

1

: a method of analyzing psychic phenomena and treating mental and emotional disorders that is based on the concepts and theories of Sigmund Freud, that emphasizes the importance of free association and dream analysis, and that involves treatment sessions during which the patient is encouraged to talk freely about personal experiences and especially about early childhood and dreams

2

: a body of empirical findings and a set of theories on human motivation, behavior, and personality development that developed especially with the aid of psychoanalysis

3

: a school of psychology, psychiatry, and psychotherapy founded by Sigmund Freud and rooted in and applying psychoanalysis

PSYCHIATRIST

                                                                       PSYCHIATRIST



A psychiatrist is a physician who specializes in psychiatry. A psychiatrist specializes in the diagnosis and treatment of mental disorder.Psychiatrists are medical doctors who must evaluate patients to determine whether or not their symptoms are the result of a physical illness, a combination of physical and mental, or a strictly psychiatric one. As part of the clinical assessment process they may employ a mental status examination,a physical examination,brain imaging such as computerized tomography (CT/CAT scan), magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and positron emission tomography (PET) scanning, and blood testing.Psychiatrists prescribe medicine, and may also use phychotherapy , although the vast majority do medical management and refer to a psychologist or another specialized therapist for weekly to bi-monthly psychotherapy.

Some psychiatrists specialize in helping certain age groups. Pediatric psychiatry  is the area of the profession working with children in addressing psychological problems. Psychiatrists specializing in geriatric psychiatry work with the elderly and are called geriatric psychiatrists or geropsychiatrists. Those who practice psychiatry in the workplace are called occupational psychiatrists in the United States and occupational psychology is the name used for the most similar discipline in the UK.Psychiatrists working in the courtroom and reporting to the judge and jury, in both criminal and civil court cases, are called forensic psychiatrists,who also treat mentally disordered offenders and other patients whose condition is such that they have to be treated in secure units.
      A psychiatrist is a medical doctor that specializes in the treatment of mental disorders. Psychiatrists are sometimes confused with psychologists,and while there are many similarities between the two professions, there are also many important differences.
         Because psychiatrists hold a medical degree and are trained in the practice of psychiatry, they are one of the few professionals in the mental health field able to prescribe medications to treat psychological disorders.Much like a general practice physician, a psychiatrist may also perform physical exams and order diagnostic tests in addition to practicing psychotherapy.
        Psychiatrists may also work as part of a mental health team, often consulting with primary care physicians, social workers and psychologists.
        There are a number of different specialty areas in psychiatry. Some different types of specialized psychiatrists include:
Addiction psychiatrist – Works with people suffering from addiction and substance abuse issues.
Adult psychiatrist – Works with adults experiencing mental illness or psychological distress.
Adolescent and child psychiatrist – Works with children and teens.
Forensic psychiatrist – Works in the courts and criminal justice system.
Geriatric psychiatrist – Works with elderly populations.
Neuropsychiatrist – Treats mental disorders associated with nervous system problems, brain diseases and brain injuries.
Organizational psychiatrist – Practices psychiatry in workplace and organizational settings.

DESTRUCTIVENESS

                                                                       DESTRUCTIVENESS

           Harmful, devastating and damaging are all words to describe destructive behaviors. Destructive behaviors not only affect the child exhibiting the behavior, but also the lives of family members and others around the child. The effects of destructive behaviors may have a short life span or may have damaging effects which last a life time. Therefore, it is extremely crucial to recognize destructive behaviors and implement some type of behavior management program. It may be that as a parent, you may not have the necessary skills to manage the misbehavior. In cases such as this, you may want to seek the assistance of a professional.
         Identifying whether children's misbehavior is really destructive may be relatively easy if the behavior exhibits obvious damaging results. However, if the effects of the misbehavior do not carry any physical scars or bruises, it may not be as obvious that the behavior is indeed destructive.
         If children tend to be thoughtless and self-centered; to blast their stereos at inappropriate moments; to use language occasionally that is less than desirable; and to exploit independence; then relax--your children sound fairly well-adjusted. However, you probably will want to devote some attention and take action if your child persists with displays of anger, deception, aggression, and rebelliousness. 
          General Characteristics
         Children who consistently exhibit destructive misbehavior may be indicating low levels of self-control and self-esteem. There are two primary underlying causes of destructive misbehavior. These are low self-esteem and self-control. Keep in mind that destructive misbehavior does not necessarily or always cause immediate harm to the children, but the immediate harm may be experienced by others.
         Environmental Needs to Help the Child
         Destructive behaviors, which are unacceptable behaviors, are used as tools by children to display their feelings in unacceptable ways. For this reason, an environment which not only models acceptable behavior but also encourages acceptable behavior through discipline is essential. Realize that there is a distinct difference between discipline and punishment.
         Discipline is an overall package that provides guidance and direction for children. Guidance and direction take into account the specific needs of children, the nature of the misbehavior, and the children's abilities. The purpose of discipline is to direct children toward independence and to become individuals that can function in acceptable ways in society.
         Children exhibiting destructive behaviors need an environment with structure. This structure should include daily routines with modification being made as changes in misbehavior occur. Rules should be established as a part of the structured plan. Be careful that all rules are meaningful and purposeful. As with any child, rules need to be expressed and enforced with consistency.
          The environment for managing destructive misbehavior must have a wealth of love and praise. Remember that the underlying factors for the misbehavior are lack of self-esteem, revenge, and power. Active love can go a long way to help eliminate and heal the inadequacies that feed the misbehavior. 
        Parents and Siblings
          At times, children who exhibit destructive misbehavior may seem intolerable. You may feel that there is nothing that you can say or do. Always remember that there is help for you in many of the community resources available. As you work toward managing misbehavior independently or in conjunction with school personnel or other community professionals, implement some of the techniques provided below:
         Keep your cool and remain calm. 
Take action instead of reacting to the behavior. Take the heat out of the situation and calm the child. 
Don't make threats. 
Address misbehavior rather than ignore it. 
Talk with the child. Try to strengthen the relationship. 
Stress the positive behaviors of the child. 
Guide the child into taking responsibility for his or her own actions. 
Always ask before accusing. 
Seek help from school or community resources. 
Encouragement and Stress Management
Living with children who display destructive behaviors can be a great stressor to the family. Distress is felt based upon your perception of the stressor--in this case destructive behavior. When you realize that the misbehavior does exist and can prepare yourself for dealing with it, this tends to diminish the stress which is experienced even though it does not diminish the severity of the behavior. Take steps to learn to manage your stress as it relates to your child's behavior.