Psychiatric Services

Depression (major depressive disorder) is a common and serious medical illness that negatively affects how you feel, the way you think and how you act. However, is it treatable with therapy, medicine and life style changes. The American Psychiatry Association reports that depression affects an estimated one in 15 adults (6.7%) in any given year. And one in six people (16.6%) will experience depression at some time in their life. Depression is common during the teenage years, affecting about 20% of adolescents by the time they reach adulthood. Medical conditions such as (e.g., thyroid problems, a brain tumor or vitamin deficiency) can mimic symptoms of depression so it is important to rule out general medical causes. Depression symptoms can vary from mild to severe and can include:

• Feeling sad or having a depressed mood
• Loss of interest or pleasure in activities once enjoyed
• Changes in appetite — weight loss or gain unrelated to dieting
• Trouble sleeping or sleeping too much
• Loss of energy or increased fatigue
• Increase in purposeless physical activity (e.g., hand-wringing or pacing) or slowed movements and speech (actions observable by others)
• Feeling worthless or guilty
• Difficulty thinking, concentrating or making decisions
• Thoughts of death or suicide

Fear and anxiety are part of life. You may feel anxious before you take a test or walk down a dark street. This kind of anxiety is useful – it can make you more alert or careful. It usually ends soon after you are out of the situation that caused it. But for millions of people in the United States, the anxiety does not go away, and gets worse over time. They may have chest pains or nightmares. They may even be afraid to leave home. These people have anxiety disorders. Types include:

• Panic disorder
• Phobias ( ex: Agorpahobia)
• Generalized anxiety disorder

ADHD stands for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, a condition with symptoms such as inattentiveness, impulsivity, and hyperactivity. ADD or attention deficit disorder is typically used to describe inattentive-type ADHD, which has symptoms including disorganization, lack of focus, and forgetfulness. Read more on our ADHD Treatment Guidelines.

A sleep disorder can affect your overall health, safety and quality of life. Sleep deprivation can affect your ability to drive safely and increase your risk of other health problems.Some of the signs and symptoms of sleep disorders include excessive daytime sleepiness, irregular breathing or increased movement during sleep. Other signs and symptoms include an irregular sleep and wake cycle and difficulty falling asleep. Some common types of sleep disorders include:

• Insomnia, in which you have difficulty falling asleep or staying asleep throughout the night.
• Sleep apnea, in which you experience abnormal patterns in breathing while you are asleep. There are several types of sleep apnea.
• Restless legs syndrome (RLS), a type of sleep movement disorder. Restless legs syndrome, also called Willis-Ekbom disease, causes an uncomfortable sensation and an urge to move the legs while you try to fall asleep.
• Narcolepsy, a condition characterized by extreme sleepiness during the day and falling asleep suddenly during the day.

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a real illness. You can get PTSD after living through or seeing a traumatic event, such as war, a hurricane, sexual assault, physical abuse, or a bad accident. PTSD makes you feel stressed and afraid after the danger is over. It affects your life and the people around you. PTSD starts at different times for different people. Signs of PTSD may start soon after a frightening event and then continue. Other people develop new or more severe signs months or even years later. PTSD can happen to anyone, even children. PTSD can cause problems like:

• Flashbacks, or feeling like the event is happening again
• Trouble sleeping or nightmares
• Feeling alone
• Angry outbursts
• Feeling worried, guilty, or sad

Bipolar disorder is a serious mental illness. People who have it go through unusual mood changes. They go from very happy, “up,” and active to very sad and hopeless, “down,” and inactive, and then back again. They often have normal moods in between. The up feeling is called mania. The down feeling is depression. The causes of bipolar disorder aren’t always clear. It runs in families. Abnormal brain structure and function may also play a role. Bipolar disorder often starts in a person’s late teen or early adult years. But children and adults can have bipolar disorder too. The illness usually lasts a lifetime. If not treated, bipolar disorder can lead to damaged relationships, poor job or school performance, and even suicide. However, there are effective treatments to control symptoms: medicine and talk therapy. A combination usually works best.

Schizophrenia is a serious brain illness. People who have it may hear voices that aren’t there. They may think other people are trying to hurt them. Sometimes they don’t make sense when they talk. The disorder makes it hard for them to keep a job or take care of themselves.

Symptoms of schizophrenia usually start between ages 16 and 30. Men often develop symptoms at a younger age than women. People usually do not get schizophrenia after age 45. There are three types of symptoms:Psychotic symptoms distort a person’s thinking. These include hallucinations (hearing or seeing things that are not there), delusions (beliefs that are not true), trouble organizing thoughts, and strange movements. No one is sure what causes schizophrenia. Your genes, environment, and brain chemistry may play a role.
There is no cure. Medicine can help control many of the symptoms. You should stay on your medicine for as long as it is recommends. Additional treatments can help you deal with your illness from day to day. These include therapy, family education, rehabilitation, and skills training.

A personality disorder is a type of mental disorder in which you have a rigid and unhealthy pattern of thinking, functioning and behaving. A person with a personality disorder has trouble perceiving and relating to situations and people.

Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is a type of anxiety disorder. If you have OCD, you have frequent, upsetting thoughts called obsessions. To try to control the thoughts, you feel an overwhelming urge to repeat certain rituals or behaviors. These are called compulsions. Examples of obsessions are a fear of germs or a fear of being hurt. Compulsions include washing your hands, counting, checking on things, or cleaning. With OCD, the thoughts and rituals cause distress and get in the way of your daily life. Treatments include therapy, medicines, or both. One type of therapy, cognitive behavioral therapy, is useful for treating OCD.