Frequently Asked Questions:
1) Are mental health
problems similar to other health problems? If so, why is there so much stigma
about it?
Mental health problems (psychiatric disorders), in one
sense, are similar to other diseases like neurological disorders, heart
disease, kidney problems etc. Commonly if anyone develops a disease, he or she
goes to the concerned doctor immediately. Also he tells other people about the
disease.
But if anyone is affected in his mind, he does not tell anybody about it, nor does he go to a doctor. This is because if it is known to others that somebody is having a mental health (psychiatric) problem, our society gives him titles like “mad” or “mental”.
We need to remember that any one of us can be affected in
our minds at any point of time. So, each one of us needs to change our attitude
towards those innocent people whose mental health is affected. Then only we can
take them to the right doctor at the right time and help them.
2) How do people
commonly develop mental health problems?
There is no one in the world who does not have any problem.
Any person at any time can be affected in his mind through some loss or failure
or other problems in life. Some people come out of those difficulties. But some
people keep on thinking about the problems and are affected in their minds.
There will be neurochemical changes in their brains. And there will be changes in
their behaviour, which manifest as mental health problems.
3) What are the
common symptoms of mental health problems?
The common symptoms are fear, suspicion, depression,
anxiety, stress, sleep problems, suicidal thoughts, hearing voices in the ear
when all alone, talking/ muttering/ smiling all alone, violent behaviour,
hostile attitude, falsely suspecting spouse’s (wife’s or husband’s)
fidelity (faithfulness), recurrent and irrational thoughts and
accompanying acts like repeated washing or checking, other strange experiences
and behaviours etc.
People also can have memory problems, problems in
food intake, sexual problems, diseases for which no cause could be found, addiction
to alcohol, nicotine (smoking), drugs, social media, video games, internet
etc., personality disorders, anger control problems, interpersonal conflicts,
family problems, marriage related problems, career and job related problems,
learning problems, guilt, spiritual conflicts etc. Children and teenagers also
can develop behavioural and emotional problems because of
various reasons.
4) How should these
symptoms be approached?
All of these should be treated promptly and appropriately.
Mental health problem is not something to be covered up. One has to take treatment and
counselling for mental health problems just like one takes treatment
for other diseases. Then it can be controlled effectively.
5) Is mental health
so important?
Many of
you would be familiar with this famous proverb “Sound mind in a
sound body”. It points to the proven fact that our body and mind are
so deeply related to each other. If you have problems in your mind like fear
and anxiety, it can affect your body by making you physically weak and prone to
various bodily illnesses. Likewise if you have physical ailments, it can affect
your mental health also. Research shows that many physical disorders are
predisposed, precipitated and exacerbated by many mental health problems.
6) People say that if
you start taking psychiatric medicines, then you have to take life long. Is it
true?
No; not
at all. This is a common myth. Once the symptoms become better with medicines
and counselling, your Psychiatrist can taper medicines slowly. But, please
don’t stop or adjust the dose without Psychiatrist’s advice. If you do that,
the symptoms may come back and you may need higher doses of medicines.
7) Are all
psychiatric medicines addictive and having serious side effects?
No; not
at all. This is another common myth. Only Benzodiazepine group among
psychiatric drugs, is addictive. It includes Alprazolam, Diazepam, Nitrazepam,
Lorazepam, Clonazepam etc. A good Psychiatrist will prescribe these only if
they are really needed for you for controlling severe symptoms, and he will try
to taper them at the earliest, so that you do not get addicted to it.
If
psychotherapy (counselling) is also given along with medicines, you may need
only smaller doses of medicines. A good Psychiatrist will choose a medicine
which suits each particular patient so that side effects would be minimum or
almost nil. He will always monitor you for any emerging side effect. If needed,
he will adjust the dose of medicines, or change over to other medicines with
lesser possibility of side effects, or add another medicine to counter the side
effects.
For
more information:
If you have more questions to ask, you can mail them to sandeeppsychiatry@gmail.com .
