Why I want you to know what I know?
1.Make my job easier:
I you knew what I know about mental health, its problems and treatments you may be doing better and it would make my job easier as would any other mental health professional. Let’s get started. Are you as happy as you can be, or know somebody who can be happier, if so read on, for you may help yourself and them.
2.Suffer less and be happier:
There is unnecessary suffering in the world , especially in the realm of mental health. You can feel better, be happier and have more success in life. Let start by dividing people into three groups, those who are “well”, those I call the suffering well, and the not so well. All three groups can be doing better. The not so well have major mental problems and may not be getting optimal treatment with medication and psychotherapy, the suffering well may not even know that they are suffering because they are doing so well in the eyes of some observers, and the so called well may not be functioning at their best, but are reasonably happy, though deep down they often feel something is missing, that they cant put their finger on, and if they could only have that then they could be really happy. This is written for all three groups, who can benefit from what I know.
3.You need to become your own therapist and diagnostician :
Unlike other fields of medicine psychiatric medicine main tools of evaluation and some of the treatment tool are available to anyone who is willing to learn about them, and apply them to themselves and their loved ones. The main diagnostic tool is the human mind, and all the non medical therapies or psychotherapies use the human mind as their tool, with the therapist being a guide , a teacher, and the real therapy being done by the identified patient themselves. A good example of this is hypnosis, almost all hypnosis is self hypnosis and must be practiced by the patient effectively for it to work and to be helpful. Weekly therapy sessions with ones therapist are only the beginning of what should be daily self therapy done by the patient and their family. This is why I believe why most therapies don’t work as well as they should or could, because the one who is the patient does not become their own self therapist. It is like you only practice tennis or golf or the piano with your teacher, and don’t do anything between the sessions.
Medicines and other physical therapies aren’t as effective either because they are not combined with other self therapy using the mind.
If nothing else this series is about knowing what you can learn and do to help make the correct diagnosis and treatment plan with your professional.
4.Nobody can read your mind, but you can learn how to read your own and share it with others who can help:
You may not be getting better, or you can be doing better if only you know what to tell you treatment professional. They cannot read your mind. Only you can tell them what the problem is, using your own mind. You can do this by learning a little about how your mind works, and how mental health problems show themselves in problems in major areas of you life, manifesting themselves as emotions, thoughts, behaviors, physical symptoms, or is the context of functioning in your self, with others in the family, or at school, or work, or in the community, or the world at large. Any of these may be where your mental health problem is showing itself.
5.You can learn to use some of the same tools I use to help make your diagnosis and plan for treatment:
The main tools I use are history about you and your family, symptom or problem picture and sometimes most importantly and often neglected is the treatment or attempted treatment responses.
You can learn how about the history of mental health problems, their symptom presentation and how treatments, medical and non biological ones effect outcome. You need to be involved in making your own diagnosis, understanding what treatment is needed, and what the response may be. These writings are about getting you started in these areas.