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If you struggle with the symptoms of a mental health condition, you are not alone. According to the National Institute on Mental Health (NIMH), “more than one in five U.S. adults live with a mental illness.”[1]
While some mental health conditions can be treated with therapy, sometimes people need a little extra support. Certain psychiatric illnesses require daily medication to achieve recovery. For example, mental health conditions like bipolar disorder or schizophrenia cause chemical imbalances in the brain, which means therapy won’t address every symptom without combining it with medication.
If you are interested in receiving medication to manage a psychiatric disorder, you need to find a psychiatrist. There are inpatient and outpatient psychiatric facilities, each type providing its benefits. If you need to continue working or caring for outside responsibilities, outpatient psychiatry is the best option for you.
During intensive outpatient care, you’ll undergo an in-depth assessment, diagnosis, and treatment planning. These processes make it possible to provide you with a personalized treatment plan. Next, you’ll be prescribed medication and monitored over several weeks to ensure the medication works for you.
In this article, you will learn:
- What is an outpatient mental health treatment center?
- Which psychiatric illnesses are treated by psychiatrists?
- How does outpatient mental health treatment and psychiatry work?
What is an Outpatient Mental Health Treatment Program?
Outpatient mental health treatment centers allow you to live at home and commute to treatment sessions. Depending on your needs, you might have a treatment session 1 to 5 times per week. During one of these programs, you’ll receive a variety of behavioral health services, including psychiatry.
Outpatient psychiatry begins with an in-depth assessment. The mental health professional will ask you questions about what symptoms you are experiencing, how they impact your daily life, and whether you’ve ever tried mental health treatment before. They might also ask you about your family’s history of mental illness.
Once the assessments are complete, your psychiatrist will provide you with a diagnosis. You might have an anxiety disorder, depression, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), bipolar disorder, or some other form of mental illness. The mental health disorder you have will affect what medications you are prescribed.
Once you are prescribed medication, your psychiatrist will check in with you routinely to see how you are doing. They’ll ask if you are experiencing any side effects, whether your symptoms are still bothering you, and more. Your answers will allow them to determine if your medication needs to be adjusted, changed, or if it is working well for you.
What Psychiatric Disorders Can Outpatient Psychiatry Treat?
Outpatient psychiatry is designed for mild to moderate mental illnesses. To explain, if your symptoms cause disruptions in your daily life but are not life-threatening or severe, you could benefit from outpatient mental health treatment. That said, outpatient psychiatry can be used to manage any mental illness you can think of.
While an outpatient psychiatric program can treat any mental illness, some conditions are more common than others. The most common psychiatric disorders treated in an outpatient mental health treatment center include:
- Anxiety disorders, like social anxiety or generalized anxiety disorder (GAD)
- Depression and major depressive disorder (MDD)
- Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
- Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)
- Bipolar disorder
- Personality disorders
- Schizoaffective disorder or schizophrenia
- Conduct disorders
- And more!
While severe mental illnesses can be treated on an outpatient basis, sometimes inpatient care is required. For example, if you have bipolar disorder and are in the midst of a manic episode, you might need to seek residential behavioral health services and mental health treatment.
How Does Intensive Outpatient Psychiatry in New Jersey Work?
If you are interested in attending an outpatient mental health treatment program, you need to know how it works. Outpatient psychiatry is the most common form of psychiatric treatment. You can receive this type of care from a private practice, at a hospital, or in an outpatient mental health treatment center.
During an outpatient psychiatric program, you will receive the following services:
Assessment and Behavioral Health Treatment Planning
The first step in outpatient psychiatry is an in-depth assessment. A licensed professional will ask you questions about what symptoms you are experiencing, how they impact your ability to function, and whether you’ve received a diagnosis before. After the general assessment, you’ll take specific assessments to determine what diagnostic criteria you meet.
Once your symptoms are assessed and you are diagnosed with a condition, your psychiatrist can create an individualized treatment plan.
Weighing Treatment Options
While creating your treatment plan, the psychiatrist will decide what type of treatment is right for you. Sometimes, a comprehensive approach is necessary, which means they’ll refer you to an inpatient mental health rehab. These programs offer services like individual therapy, group therapy, family therapy, and treatment for co-occurring disorders.
However, if the psychiatry resident believes that outpatient treatment is sufficient for your needs, they’ll begin deciding what type of medication is right for you. They’ll also come up with a plan for how often you should visit them.
Prescribing Medication and Medication Management
Your psychiatrist will prescribe a medication for you to pick up at a pharmacy. The type of medication you take will depend on what condition you have. For example, depression is often treated with selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), while bipolar disorder is managed with antipsychotics or mood stabilizers.
Once you start taking the medication, you’ll have regular check-ins with the psychiatrist. They will ask you whether your symptoms are improving and check to make sure the side effects are not severe. If you have bad side effects or your symptoms are still bothering you, they might change the dosage or switch you to a new medication.
Referrals for Therapy and Further Treatment
Sometimes medication is not enough to manage your condition. If your psychiatrist believes you’ll benefit from therapy, they will refer you to a psychologist. Some outpatient psychiatric programs hire psychologists for this reason, which means you’ll already have access to individual therapy, group therapy, and family therapy.
If your psychiatrist believes you have a substance use disorder, they’ll refer you to dual diagnosis rehab. These programs offer addiction and mental health treatment services at the same time. In other words, you’ll be able to recover from your mental illness and substance abuse simultaneously.
Get Connected to an Outpatient Program for Psychiatry in New Jersey
If you need behavioral health treatment for a psychiatric condition, you might want to consider an intensive outpatient program that includes psychiatry. These programs offer assessment, diagnosis, medication management, and behavioral health counseling. Outpatient psychiatry in New Jersey can help you get stabilized on a medication that relieves your daily symptoms.
At New Jersey Behavioral Health Center, we offer an outpatient program that focuses on helping you make positive changes in your life and allows you to receive psychiatry while living in the comfort of your own home. We also offer a variety of counseling services, including individual therapy, group therapy, and family therapy. Additionally, if you struggle with substance abuse, we offer dual diagnosis care.
Contact us today for a free consultation and more information on why our psychiatric outpatient program is your best option in New Jersey. Our medication management and therapy services can help you overcome any condition, whether you suffer from depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, or a personality disorder.
References:
- The National Institute on Mental Health (NIMH): Mental Illness