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Mental Health Assessments Assessments are a vital tool for helping people to know their mental health. Professionals employ a variety of tools to help with this, including self-report and standardized tools. A common one is a mental status examination, which aids doctors and counselors purposefully observe a client's appearance, attitude and activities, mood and emotions, thoughts and insights. Symptoms Mental health problems can cause people to change their mood, thoughts and behavior. These can affect their ability to work and interact with others. Mental illness is a serious health issue. Many of the same ailments that impact physical health can also affect mental health. Everybody experiences mood fluctuations. However, if I Am Psychiatry are dramatic and persist for a long period, it may be a sign of a mental illness. Common symptoms include changes in sleep, eating, or energy levels; an extreme increase or reduction in emotions like sadness, joy or anger; difficulties recalling or concentrating on things and feeling exhausted constantly. It's important to not ignore your concerns about someone you love. Making contact with a helpline, or contacting an expert in health can prevent mental health issues from becoming worse. Many of these changes are triggered by life events, like loss of a job, family problems or an accident that is serious. It is important to seek treatment for a mental illness to ensure it doesn't impact your relationships or work. Certain illnesses can be treated with counselling or medication. Some conditions require hospital treatment. There are more than 200 mental disorders that can be classified, including bipolar disorder, schizophrenia depression and anxiety disorders. Some of them are extremely serious and could be life threatening. Certain phobias are less severe and don't impact daily life as significantly. The mental health of a person is affected by many factors, including genetics and biological differences and life events and stress, lifestyle choices and the way society treats its members. It is crucial to recognize that mental illness should not be treated with shame. It can be treated as is heart disease. Mental illness can be treated and many people can recover with proper treatment. This can include psychotherapy (talk therapy) or medication like antidepressants and sedatives. Combining treatments is typically the most efficient. Some people find that self-help groups and support groups can be beneficial as well. History A mental health history is an important component of any evaluation. A psychiatrist will also need be aware of your medical history, and whether you have relatives with mental illness. They'll also inquire about your current medications as well as any previous drug abuse or alcoholism that you may have suffered from. In certain instances doctors might require you to keep a log of your symptoms, or bring an individual or a relative along so they can get the full picture from their viewpoint. For some who are suffering from mental health issues, a mental health evaluation is the first step to seeking treatment for a condition. Often it is triggered by a referral by a physician or another professional, but it can be initiated by the individual themselves. The psychiatric assessment will give the professional the information they need to make an assessment. Through the entirety of recorded time, Western civilization's view of mental illness was based on supernatural forces and demonic possession, which led to primitive treatment methods like drilling a hole in the head (trepanning). The 18th and 19th centuries saw the rise of a more humane approach to treating the mentally ill, as doctors began to abandon these superstitions and adopt logical explanations/theories for their patients. The term “mental” is employed in two ways: to describe a state of mind, and to define a state of well-being and as a concept that encompasses psychiatry and therapy. While there is a general movement to separate mental health apart from psychiatry and establish it as a separate discipline however, this distinction is yet to be fully established. The definition of mental health is different depending on the culture, but the majority of systems contain elements like self-realization an elation of achievement; happiness; and mastery over one's surroundings. However, these criteria are influenced by the cultural values that may exclude adolescents who have not fully developed their potential, those with low incomes or those who reside in poor communities or who suffer discrimination and rejection. Other assessment tools are used to determine a person's mental health such as the DSM-5 checklist that contains the symptoms of specific disorders, as well as the Life Events Checklist, which can screen for potentially traumatic or stressful events in the life of a patient. Physical Exam A medical doctor or psychiatrist will usually conduct the physical exam of a patient who is suspected of having mental health issues. The exam may be part of the physical examination, or it may be performed when a health professional believes that a specific illness such as schizophrenia, dementia or addiction to drugs is present. The test is an excellent chance to examine the patient's general appearance, and also the manner they respond to questions, their mood and whether they are hungry, thirsty or tired. The doctor will inquire about the duration of symptoms and if there is an ancestral history of mental illness. The doctor will want to find out if the patient has ever taken any medication, including over-the counter drugs and supplements. A psychiatric evaluation is essential to discover what is going on in a person's body and what type of treatment is appropriate. A diagnosis is essential, and depending on the final diagnosis a patient might require inpatient care or medication. The diagnosis is typically done in a hospital. However, some people may have a mental assessment conducted at home by an authorized professional. One of the most important components of a mental health assessment is a test of cognitive function. This includes the ability to pay attention to details, organize and recall information, solve problems, and make decisions. It also includes basic abilities like the capability of interfacing with others. In order to assess cognition, a person is asked to respond to open-ended or standardized questions and complete short stories. The evaluation of thought content includes a variety of things like hallucinations that could be auditory or visual or olfactory or tactile, delusions of status, special powers or persecution by others, paranoid thoughts, obsessive-compulsive behaviors, irrational fear, compulsions, and looseness of associations (making connections that are not relevant between various subjects), and suicidal or depressive thinking. Clinical tests, such as magnetic resonance imaging or blood tests are often required to complement a mental health evaluation. These tests can help rule out other illnesses and disorders which may trigger similar symptoms to mental illness. Tests The mental status examination explores the various aspects of a patient's health through direct questions and observation. A health professional observes the patient's mood and behavior, their level of activity, as well as their general appearance. It could also include an array of verbal or written tests including the standard rating systems used to evaluate symptoms. The MMPI-2 is a standard depression test. There are a myriad of other tests that assess the level of intelligence, anxiety and autism. The medical history of the patient and physical examination will provide important information that can be used to determine whether the symptoms are caused by a mental disorder or a medical condition like diabetes, hypothyroidism or abuse of drugs. In addition, some physical ailments like selective brain lesions or certain types of tumors present with similar symptoms to those of psychological disorders and may require laboratory or clinical testing like blood work, CT scans or MRI as an adjunct to an assessment of mental health to make a diagnosis. Psychological testing is an important component of a mental health assessment and can provide valuable information about how well the patient thinks, remembers and interacts with others. These tests can provide valuable information to identify signs like hallucinations or the tendency to make unrelated connections between different subjects. A psychiatric health assessment may include questions regarding the family history of the patient's psychiatric illness and other illnesses. It will also inquire about how long symptoms have been present and their severity and whether they affect daily activities. The patient will be asked about previous disorders of the psyche and the treatment they received. It is essential for the patient to be honest with their responses as it will help the health professional discern the extent of the patient's condition. During the interview, the health professional will observe the patient's speech and how they interact. They will also inquire with the patient about any prescription or non-prescription medicines or supplements they are taking and how these affect their mental health.