What can I expect when I arrive for my first an appointment with you or bring in my child for a first appointment with you?

Upon your first arrival we will get you started with an initial evaluation, that will go over everything that is currently affecting your life, psychiatric and medical history, current and past medications and allergies, social history (work, school, job, relationship, military, abuse history, living situation, etc.), family history, as well as many other systems which factor into your day to day life. For children we will also review gestation and developmental history. While this evaluation may seem extremely extensive, possibly even irrelevant, all these areas may factor into what is going on with you or your child.  Initial appointments typically last from forty-five minutes to an hour.  Some may take as much as two or more hours for patients who desire a more holistic approach which further involves an assessment of dietary, exercise, sleep habits, and other environmental factors.

Follow up appointments for evaluations can be expected to be much briefer then the initial evaluation. The initial post-evaluation appointment will further review any changes that may have occurred to psychiatric, social, or medical history including current medications and/or any adverse effects or other concerns. These appointments range from thirty minutes to an hour.

 

What type of mental health professional should I see?

The goal of all mental health providers is to provide the best mental health treatment service for you.  The decision as to which type of provider (psychiatrist, psychoanalyst, psychologist, or other therapist) to utilize depends on what treatment and modality works best for you. A summary of each method of treatment is listed below, however this brief description by no means encompasses all the skills or techniques these providers may offer.

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Psychoanalysts base their therapies around unconscious factors that may impact an individual’s emotions and behaviors, creating unhappiness which is hard to address without the help of a specialist who can recognize proper symptoms. During an analysis, an individual is made aware of the underlying sources of their difficulties, and becomes more comfortable opening up to the professional about their thoughts in a non-judgmental, healing setting. Treatment demonstrates how these unconscious factors affect current relationships and patterns of behavior, traces them back to their historical origins, illustrates how they have changed and developed over time, and find methods of coping. The patient is able to gain new insight into their conditions and make deep and abiding changes to their daily life.

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Psychologists often provide what is best known as “psychotherapy” which may be hour-long weekly sessions (some more, some less depending on individual patients needs and preferences). The goal in the basic sense, is to provide guidance to an individual with struggles such as processing stressors or traumas, improving communication in relationships, or changing maladaptive thoughts, beliefs, or behaviors. In addition to these skills, psychologists may perform psychological testing for neuropsychological assessments for the appraisal of difficulties such as attention deficit disorders, personality disorders, or psycho-educational evaluation to evaluate learning disabilities.

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Psychiatrists or psychiatric nurse practitioners center their focus on the more biological and genetic treatment of mental health conditions. Many of these professionals often incorporate different types of therapy or alternative treatments such as nutritional, natural supplements, behavioral changes and mindfulness practices, into the overall mental health treatment. Psychiatrists or psychiatric nurse practitioners often act as psychopharmacologists who incorporate medication as a form of their treatment, focusing primarily on the biological, genetic, and neurological/neurobiological aspect of mental health.

 

 May I join in a session with my child if I wish?

Absolutely! For the treatment of children in particular, providers must get perspective of the patient’s life from key people who can bring up topics which the child may be hesitant to discuss. However, you may be asked to step out of the room from time to time or for an appointment to be solely with your child so that the provider can talk to the child one on one. This is to determine if there are things which the child feels more comfortable discussing without a parent present. Furthermore, both parent and the child should know that nurses, nurse practitioners, psychiatrists, psychoanalysts, psychologist, etc. are legally bound by HIPPA which protect patient-provider confidentiality. There may be things discussed that your child does not want shared with you, which by law, the provider must honor. The provider can share medical and psychiatric information with patient’s consent, a court order, in certain emergent situations or if a person is an imminent danger to themselves or to others, or otherwise the patient’s inability to take care of their basic needs. While this may sound intimidating to parents, it is important to remember that a good provider will find a way to work with the child in order to find a way to make him/her comfortable expressing or discussing the issue at hand with their parent or loved one.