Who is a Psychiatrist? Symptoms & Treatments

Author: Kirankumar Rapolu

What is the difference between a Psychiatrist and a Psychologist?

The Psychiatrist is a Doctor who deals with mental health through medication and counselling, whereas Psychologists are mental health professionals who deal with only therapies and counselling.

When should you visit a psychiatrist?

One should consult a Psychiatrist when there are mental health problems that are disturbing the normal routine life. Some of the problems like long-term depression, stress, suicidal tendencies, anxiety, substance abuse need to seek medical help from Psychiatrist to recover and lead a normal healthy life. When anyone experiences excessive fear and worry, sadness, unable to control emotions and to burst out, social situations, withdrawal, self harming, sleep disturbances, lack of concentration doing work, eating disorders, constant episodes of extreme anger, in these conditions, its important to remember that these are affecting quality of life which is clear signal to visit a psychiatrist. It’s not recommended to self diagnose and make own decisions in these conditions.

What symptoms do the psychiatrists treat?

The symptoms of mental health issues treated by a psychiatrists are confusion, lack of concentration on any work, feeling low, mood changes, extreme fear, worry, unable to connect with friends and family, hallucinations, difficulty in coping with problems, alcohol and drug abuse, poor eating habits, suicidal thoughts, extreme anger and hostility. Also they are specialized in treating obsessive compulsive disorder, anxiety, depression, delusions, changes in sleep schedules, poor performance in the work, etc.

What treatment options do the psychiatrists provide?

Psychiatrists are specialized in providing treatments to various conditions such as alzheimer’s disease, autism disorder, depression, eating disorders, mood disorders, alcohol use disorder, anxiety disorder, bipolar disorder, ADHD, dissociative disorder, hoarding disorder, obsessive compulsive disorder, personality disorders, schizophrenia, postpartum depression, and sleep disorders, etc. The treatment options used by psychiatrists are medications, psychotherapy which is a talk therapy, and other treatment options like electric convulsive treatment (ECT), transcranial magnetic stimulation, and light therapy. The psychotherapy involves various therapies such as cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT), problem-solving therapy (PST), psychodynamic therapy, and dialectical behavioral therapy (DBT). The medications treat mental health conditions such as antidepressants, hypnotics, sedatives, antipsychotics, mood stabilizers, and ketamine, etc.

Conclusion:

It is highly important to seek medical help for any mental health condition from a Psychiatrist to avoid severe consequences. Mental health to be given priority in anyone’s lives, which can be provided by a psychiatrist. Thus psychiatrist is highly trained in treating various mental health issues through different treatments options to make the individual healthy and to lead a normal life. One should consult one of the