Chapter 14: Treating Disorders of Mind and Body
Chapter Review
Summarizing the Principles of Treating Disorders of Mind and Body
How Is Mental Illness Treated?1. Psychotherapy is based on psychological principles: Psychotherapeutic treatments focus on insights. Psychodynamic forms focus on uncovering the unconscious. Humanistic approaches focus on clarifying feelings and motives. Behavioral approaches focus on modifying maladaptive behaviors, and include social skills training and systematic desensitization. Cognitive approaches restructure thinking. Group support is provided with group therapy, and a systems approach is part of family therapy.
2. Biological therapies are necessary for some disorders: Psychotropic medications change neurochemistry. Antianxiety drugs increase GABA activity. Antidepressants, in their various forms, affect serotonin availability. Antipsychotics reduce positive symptoms.
3. Common factors enhance treatment: Therapy helps, although different therapies are useful for different conditions. There are factors common to most successful therapies. Enhancement factors include a caring therapist and the benefit of unburdening one's problems.
What Are the Most Effective Treatments?
4. Treatments that focus on behavior and cognition are superior for anxiety disorders: Behavioral methods are effective in alleviating specific phobias. Cognitive restructuring is effecting in treating panic disorders. Obsessivecompulsive disorder (OCD) responds to medications that block serotonin reuptake and to cognitive-behavioral therapy.
5. Many effective treatments are available for depression: Pharmacological treatments include MAO inhibitors, tricyclics, and SSRIs. Cognitive-behavioral treatments are most effective when combined with antidepressants. Alternative therapies include phototherapy for seasonal affective disorder (SAD) sufferers and electroconvulsive therapy and transcranial magnetic stimulation for psychotic depression.
6. Lithium is most effective for bipolar disorder: The psychotropic medication lithium has been found to be the most effective in stabilizing mood in bipolar patients but has considerable side effects. Psychological therapy can help support compliance with drug treatment.
7. Pharmacological treatments are superior for schizophrenia: Antipsychotic medications are most effective for reducing the positive symptoms of schizophrenia. Tardive dyskinesia and other side effects are common with the older antipsychotic drugs. Clozapine acts specifically on dopamine receptors and reduces both positive and negative symptoms, with fewer side effects. The prognosis for patients depends on a variety of factors, including age of onset, gender, and culture.
Can Personality Disorders Be Treated?
8. Dialectical behavior therapy is most successful for borderline personality disorder: DBT combines elements of behavioral, cognitive, and psychodynamic therapy. Therapy proceeds in three stages. First, the most extreme behaviors are targeted, and replaced with more appropriate behaviors. Next, the therapist explores past traumatic events. Finally, the therapist helps the patient develop self-respect and independence.
9. Antisocial personality disorder is difficult to treat: Psychotherapeutic approaches have not proven effective for treating antisocial personality disorder. Behavioral and cognitive approaches have been more effective, but most effectively in a controlled residential treatment environment. Generally, the prognosis is poor. Focusing on prevention by addressing conduct disorder in childhood may be the best strategy.
How Should Childhood Disorders Be Treated?
10. Children with ADHD can benefit from a variety of approaches: Methylphenidate, despite its side effects, is an effective pharmacological treatment, and works best as part of an overall treatment plan including psychotherapy, particularly behavioral treatment.
11. Autistic children benefit from a structured treatment approach: Behavioral approaches have been effective in improving language and social behavior. The treatment strategy is very time intensive and extends for years. Dietary restrictions of gluten, which result in elevated peptides, have been effective for some autistic children. Some children also improve with SSRIs. In general, the long-term prognosis is poor.
Chapter Menu
Instructors now have an easy way to collect students’ online quizzes with the Norton Gradebook without flooding their inboxes with e-mails.
Students can track their online quiz scores by setting up their own Student Gradebook.