Spirituality and Hope in Mental Health

A new frontier for the mental healthcare recovery movement is the effects of spirituality and hope in mental illnesses. Now importantly, spirituality and hope are not one in the same. Spirituality is finding some sort of faith, whether in a religion or in one's self, to lean upon. Hope in regards to mental illness recovery, on the other hand, can stem from both spirituality and through learning from great examples.
Hope in mental health recovery is crucial. One must have something to drive themselves to improvement or they risk a feeling of stagnation, which can spiral into a lack of activity, growing weight disorders, and adult onset diabetes. Such discussion, however, ventures into the realm of the importance of physical activity in mental health recovery, which is truly a topic in and of itself, thus for fear of digression, as important and immense as the subject matter is, it will not be discussed further in this article.
As one begins to notice, those in the upper functioning levels of recovery in mental health care facilities tend to have abnormally high levels of faith and spirituality. This suggests that spirituality, and all the necessary self-reflection that occurs through the path to spirituality or faith in any given belief, serves as an external motivation and support system for recovery from mental illness. This occurs for several reasons. Primarily, following a form of religion tends to expose the mental healthcare consumer to a supportive social network; as will be discussed in a future article, productive and supportive social networks are crucial on the path to recovery. Religion also encourages self-reflection for the purpose of discovering one's relationship to both figures of external deities and to those in the surrounding community.
This form of self reflection is of immensely constructive value, for it is echoed in a psychological treatment plan for mental healthcare recovery known as Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT). DBT is a method of psychotherapy developed by the University of Washington's Marhsa Linehan, which follows a pseudo-Buddhist meditative approach of self-reflection for the purpose of emotional regulation and distress management. Importantly, I do not propose to push one religion over another, I am very much a proponent of spirituality in one's self being just as effective, if not more, than spirituality in the form of a religion; it is merely the act of self-reflective meditation, whether that be seated meditation such as the Buddhists, Daoists, or Zen practitioners, or whether it be active meditation in the form of yoga, jogging, martial arts, etc. which is important. Spirituality in mental healthcare recovery forces the individual to acknowledge the self; to acknowledge the self's shortcomings, and yes, to recognize the self's strengths as well, which ultimately results in more progressive and realistic treatment goals, thus more effective recovery tactics.
One can thus understand why spirituality, whether that be in the form of religion or self-belief, is important to recovery, but hope is on an equal playing field of importance. Hope can stem from spirituality (as in a desire to become a better, more balanced person), but is also derived from exposure to examples of success. The American Club House Model of mental healthcare recovery positions those with mental illnesses in a close proximity to one another. After speaking with several mental healthcare consumers, one begins to recognize the influence of successful individuals with mental illnesses on those still on the path to recovery. Those still struggling with their disorder can learn from successful examples, learn from others' former mistakes, and hold others as a shining light when they hit a down-swing; also serving as inspirational to many healthcare consumers are the many success stories being published on YouTube, which allows consumers to view those who suffer from severe mental illnesses and their successes from anywhere in the world.
Spirituality and hope in mental illness recovery can be monumentally important. The Western slope and coastal regions of the United States are starting to push such a methodology via their Hope studies, while the Eastern state hospitals and mental healthcare facilities are tending to lag behind. Hope in mental health recovery is monumentally important, and is a cutting edge development for mental healthcare practitioners.
Find a sense of spirituality, whether that be in a higher power or faith in yourself. Discover the hope that follows. And then, you will notice the difference in recovery hope truly represents.

-Lex Douvasa
Information Systems Researcher and Data Mining Mental Health Researcher
To find out more about MHCD's cutting edge research on Hope studies and other related topics, check out the Research and Evaluation Homepage.
To continue towards a great discourse about mental health recovery, click here.
Stay healthy, stay happy!

Mood Disorders - Depression

The study results conclude that mood disorder and depression are two Faces of the same coin. We can call depression as a symptom of mood disorder. Feeling of hopelessness, apathy and low energy are indications of depression. Mood disorder is also characterized by failures and rejections in ones life. It is both a psychotic and a neurotic condition.
Depression is mainly because of the consequences of life such as the death of kin etc. Most of these kinds of depression (bipolar) fade away with the time and as one takes the new situation in his/her stride. It is not for nothing that they say time is the best healer. The chronic mood disorders (unipolar), in some cases genetic, require medical attention as they can be life threatening (suicides). The unipolar mood disorders are major types and clinical attention is necessary. No amount of love from kin, positive thinking or counseling can help. Medical assistance is imperative to cure the depression spread over sessions. Lack of treatment can result in permanent behavioral disorder.
Off late is believed that depression is connected to deficiency of norepinephrine and serotonin. Drug therapy uses various antidepressants. Caution needs to be exercised in administration of drug supplements in bipolar patients. Mood disorders or depressions of unipolar type has benefited from electroconvulsive therapy.
Psychologists have argued in recent years that the depression or the mood disorder is a result of learned helplessness when a person understands his actions have been useless and looses hope. It is also found that such people are emotionally dependent on others for morale boosting.
The most determinants of mood disorder are tackled even without medication. But non-negligence and timely diagnosis (initial diagnosis need not be even at the psychiatrist's site) can result preventing physical and physiological disorders and alcoholism etc.

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Anxiety Disorder - How to Defeat Your Nervousness

Anxiety can surface in your life in many different ways. Worrying about an upcoming event or situation or even thoughts of bad experiences can bring it out. Some can handle these symptoms when they begin to arise but for some it can become much more controlling and self limiting possibly developing into full blown anxiety disorder.
Symptoms of this condition can present themselves in both mental and physical ways. Anxiety disorders occur when our brain prematurely activates our fight or flight mechanism in response to a situation where it is not required.
Fight or flight is our bodies natural defense system when it subconsciously believes to be confronting real danger, physical symptoms include upset stomach (nausea), diarrhea, clammy feeling of the skin, increased heart rate, chest pain, loss of breath, vertigo and many others. These symptoms help reinforce the problem and work to cement the issue within your mind causing you to fear the experience from happening again.
The psychological symptoms caused by an anxiety disorder can be just as numerous like the inability to sleep, feeling on edge or jumpy for extended periods, rage or anger, lack of concentration, fear of losing your mind or losing all control are some examples.
What truly makes anxiety so difficult is the sense of fear worry and general unrest that many experience constantly has little to no relation whatsoever to the reality of the situation being actually experienced. Pressure at work, financial difficulties or trouble in a relationship can all add to the difficulties one experiences. Additionally fear of illness be it real or imagined can also bring anxiety to the surface.
The line between the stress and anxiety that everyone experiences vs. that of a disorder is really measured in the intensity, the duration and whether the feelings are on par with reality. Once you begin situation avoidance by actively living your life avoiding any situation that you subconsciously fear the chances are high that you have developed an anxiety disorder.
One point of comfort that many anxiety sufferers fail to realize is that they are far from alone as there are literally millions of people around the world who suffer greatly at the hands of this condition. Anxiety is a real and widespread condition and anyone who suffers should feel no shame when seeking help and guidance to overcome it.
The symptoms of an anxiety disorder may sound very familiar and if you feel that your experience with the above mentioned symptoms is cause for alarm than it may be the right time to speak with your healthcare provider as only a qualified medical professional can truly determine the cause and cure that may be necessary.
Being a difficult condition to diagnose you should make your doctor aware that you suspect anxiety may be behind the symptoms you're describing. Once your doctor has ruled out any potentially harmful explanations for your symptoms then the treatment of your anxiety disorder is ready to begin.
There are many different methods when it comes to treatment so be sure to discuss all the options with your doctor. Dozens of various medications are available and they all produce side effects that should be properly discussed and explained prior to use.
Medication is just one option but there are many natural remedies and alternative treatments that can have an extremely positive affect when it comes to reducing your symptoms to acceptable or dare I say normal levels.
Perhaps a lifestyle change that includes a healthy diet and daily exercise can be enough to rid you of this condition. Meditation or the use of other herbs and vitamins have also been noted to work well in the treatment of anxiety. Ultimately you will decide what the best treatment is for you but always include your doctor to avoid any possible complications. For example a well known herb for anxiety is St John's Wart but it should not be taken once you've started on an anxiety medication. These types of possible complications are why your doctor is the only one truly fit to advise you.
One thing is for sure, if you suspect you may be suffering from an anxiety disorder than actively pursue a solution and never give up until you've found it. This condition has countless stories of people suffering for years or even decades. Don't let yourself fall victim take control and never look back.

Discover how self help programs for anxiety have helped thousands overcome and completely eliminate anxiety and panic from their lives. Anxiety Self Help

What Is Drug Addiction Treatment?

For many people drug addiction treatment is the last thing standing between them and a slow, miserable death. This is because the disease of addiction is without question a progressive and fatal one. But like other serious and potentially fatal diseases, addiction can be successfully treated via detoxification, Post Acute Withdrawal Syndrome treatment, relapse prevention and denial management. This is accomplished through proven traditional therapies such as individual and group counseling, as well as experiential therapies. Understanding the process of drug addiction treatment can be extremely helpful if you or someone you love is suffering from drug addiction or alcoholism.
Detox is the first step toward recovery. This refers to the natural process that the body undergoes to restore a normal balance by eradicating the substance from the system and regaining more natural central nervous system functions. This unavoidable physiological process can cause some uncomfortable symptoms and side effects, some of which can be dangerous while detoxing from substances like opiates and alcohol. As a result, a person should always detox in a fully equipped medical setting where symptoms can be managed under the expert care of a detox and addictions specialist.
Once a person has fully detoxed from a substance, more substantial treatment can begin. This is most often in the form of residential inpatient treatment or an outpatient treatment program. The former generally consists of an intensive 30 day program where clients live and receive treatment while under 24 hour supervision, while the latter is less intense and is typically utilized for a more transitional approach to drug addiction treatment.
Both residential inpatient treatment centers and outpatient treatment programs should focus on two primary treatment objectives in order to be successful:
1.) Post Acute Withdrawal Syndrome Management
This series of symptoms begin immediately after a person has detoxed from a substance, persisting anywhere from 3-24 months. PAWS symptoms may cause drug or alcohol cravings, inability to focus on tasks, inability to organize thoughts, depression, and other problems that can lead a person to relapse in an effort to seek relief. PAWS is the most significant threat to any person's recovery and is therefore a lifelong concern that must be treated appropriately.
2.) Denial Management
Denial is a major part of addiction and alcoholism, and this doesn't change just because a person seeks out help. Just like people deny the severity or existence of their drug problem prior to treatment, they might deny any number of things during and after treatment, including doubts that can lead to relapse, denial of impending relapse warning signs, denial of the effects of stress, and even denial about a person's own ability to stay clean and sober.
PAWS and Denial Management are the foundation of Relapse Prevention and form the backbone of any successful drug addiction treatment plan. Regardless of whether these treatment modalities are utilized in an inpatient or outpatient setting, they should be taught as lifelong parts of an overall recovery plan that will continue long after a person has completed active treatment at a rehab. If you need help for addiction or alcoholism, use the links below now for a free consultation. We'll be glad to confidentially discuss how our inpatient treatment or outpatient treatment programs can help you take back your life and help you feel whole once again. Drug addiction treatment is not easy, but it works. Begin your new life right now.