Antipsychotics are a drug class used to treat psychosis and other related disorders, such as schizophrenia. There are two types of antipsychotics: first-generation or typical antipsychotics include drugs like haloperidol, and second-generation or atypical antipsychotics include drugs like risperidone. Common brand names include Haldol, Mellaril, Prolixin, and Thorazine.

Antipsychotics

Antidepressants are psychotropic medications prescribed to alleviate symptoms of mood disorders like depression and anxiety. They work by addressing chemical imbalances of neurotransmitters in the brain. Different types of antidepressants target different neurotransmitters; for example, selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) increase the availability of serotonin, while serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors (SNRIs) elevate the levels of both serotonin and norepinephrine. Common SSRIs include Prozac and Zoloft, while tricyclics include Tofranil and Elavil.

Antidepressants

A type of psychotropic medication prescribed for anxiety and agitation that occur in OCD, PTSD, panic disorder, and social phobia. Common brand names include benzodiazepines such as alprazolam (Xanax) and lorazepam (Ativan), and diazepam (Valium).  They work as GABA agonists. GABA is a neurotransmitter responsible for the suppression of brain activity which assuages anxiety. Other medications such as buspirone (Buspar), antihistamines, and beta-blockers can also be used as anxiolytics to treat the physiological symptoms of anxiety such as racing heart.

Anxiolytics/Anti-Anxiety Agents

Drug-Drug interactions are when two different/similar types of drugs interact with one another. This can cause unpredictable side effects. 

Drug to drug interactions

- Psychotherapeutics

- Opioids

- Depressants

- Marijuana

- Hallucinogens

- Stimulants

- Nicotine


Psychoactive Drugs

A Microdose is a medication given at less than 1/100th of a dose to yield an effect. Studies on this are safe because they are in such limited amounts.

Microdosing

Antidepressants are a kind of drug that works to alleviate symptoms of depression. They come in multiple different classes, such as SSRIs, SNRIs, MAOIs, TCAs, and NaSSAs, most of which work on increasing the efficacy of serotonin or norepinephrine. Most antidepressants take a few weeks in order to reach full effect.  

What are Antidepressants

The classic definition: A compound that has clinical antipsychotic efficacy while producing minimal catalepsy. 
Now: An atypical agent is now seen as an agent that 

1. decreased propensity to produce catalepsy or other movement disorders, 

2. does not elevate prolactin concentrations, 

3. significantly reduced positive and negative symptoms of schizophrenia.

Atypical Antipsychotics - What is an atypical Antipsychotic?

Low threshold responders are individuals who experience a type of drug hypersensitivity that causes amplified or abnormal effects from medications and psychoactive substances which are caused by biological and genetic sensitivities. These individuals have abnormal responses to antidepressants, antipsychotics, stimulants, sedatives, and recreational substances like caffeine, alcohol, cannabis, and psychedelics. Unlike general adverse drug reactions which can be sudden and unexpected, low threshold responders have a predictable pattern of intolerance to multiple substances due to neurotransmitter imbalances, slowed metabolism, or receptor sensitivity. 

The biggest cause of this is due to mutations in specific genes that regulate dopamine, serotonin, or other neurotransmitter responses, especially when given anything that changes the levels of neurotransmitters in the brain. These individuals are often mislabeled as treatment resistant as they may develop an intolerance to substances that impact neurotransmission or may have a heightened response to these substances.

Low Threshold Responders: Drug Hypersensitivity

Psychopharmacology is the study of medications as a treatment for mental disorders. This includes understanding:

1. Protein binding

2. Half-life

3. Polymorphic genes

4. Drug - to - drug Interactions

University of South Florida

- Psychotherapy
- Play therapy
- Psychotropic medications

Combination psychotherapy and psycho-pharmacotherapy is the most effective treatment strategy.

Treatment Options for Abuse Victims

There’s no known pharmacotherapy for treating DDD. Most medications prescribed to patients with DDD fall into the categories of antidepressant and anxiolytic and are used to alleviate comorbid anxiety and mood symptoms (especially panic and obsessions), but don't treat the dissociative psychopathology. Stabilization of mood may contribute to a more tolerable affective state with DDD.

Pharmacotherapy and DDD

- Psychotherapy
- Pharmacological 
- Hospitalization/Inpatient treatment
- Support groups
- Alternative treatment
- Telepractice
- Neuromodulation
- Biomedical therapy

Mental Health Treatment Methods/Interventions

Home. ASCP American Society of Clinical Psychopharmacology. (n.d.). Retrieved March 27, 2022, from https://ascpp.org/resources/information-for-patients/what-is-psychopharmacology/ 

Psychopharmacology

A type of therapy that helps clients, often children, to prevent or resolve psychosocial difficulties and achieve optimal growth by utilizing a therapeutic process of play. It harnesses children's natural urge to explore and uses it to help them express emotions that might be otherwise difficult to communicate. Play objects allow the child to displace difficult feelings, dreams, fantasies, and traumas. A therapist may observe the behaviors of the child while playing and also utilize play therapy to assist in the diagnosis process. Both nondirective and directed play therapy are possible.

Play Therapy

Group interventions have shown effectiveness in treatment for survivors of childhood abuse. Group intervention are significantly more effective than individual treatment alone for depression and anxiety in survivors of childhood abuse.


Group Therapy for Survivors of Childhood Abuse



Strengthens a child’s emotional regulation, and the ability to deal with stress provides and teaches the child to accept and give social support, and forms positive/nurturing relationships. 

Secure Attachment Bond

Psychotherapy, also known as talk therapy, is a psychological treatment that employs a variety of methods to help individuals overcome personal problems, resolve emotional difficulties, and achieve personal growth. The primary goals are to help people find relief from distress, seek solutions to challenges, and modify unhelpful patterns of thinking and acting. Psychotherapy can be utilized as a standalone treatment or in conjunction with other approaches, such as biomedical therapy.

Psychotherapy

Any action intended to interfere with and stop or modify a process, as in treatment undertaken to halt, manage, or alter the course of the pathological process of a disease or disorder.

Intervention

Peer support is social emotional support that is mutually offered or provided by persons having a mental health condition to others sharing a similar mental health condition to bring about a desired social or personal change. 

Peer support

A therapy that utilizes pharmaceutical drugs (i.e., antidepressants) in order to treat disorders. 

Pharmacotherapy

Telepractice is the emerging way of psychological or counseling treatment when in-person treatment is not an option or remote/virtual treatment is preferred. Diagnostic psychological assessments can also be adapted to be conducted through telepractice. 

Telepractice

Any type of treatment that does not align with the typical or conventional means of medicine.

Alternative Treatment

- Use of evidence-based treatment
- Reliance of treatment guidelines
- Technological advances to improve care
- A broader look at patient function
- Use of International Classification of Disease
- Better measures of treatment outcomes

Improving Practice in Mental Health Treatment 

References for Neuromodulation 

According to the International Neuromodulation Society, neuromodulation is a "technology that acts directly upon nerves" to alter or modulate nerve activity by "delivering electrical or pharmaceutical agents directly to the target areas. 

Neuromodulation methods can be invasive or non-invasive, as well as electrical, magnetic, or chemical. Some of these methods involve:

- Invasive Electrical Methods

- Non-invasive Electrical Methods 

- Non-invasive Magnetic Methods 

- Invasive Chemical Methods

Neuromodulation 

Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) is a form of psychotherapy centered on helping clients examine and change the relationship between their thoughts and their behaviors. The primary goal is to identify and modify cognitive distortions and self-defeating actions, thereby changing not only how individuals think but also how they act in response to various situations.

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)

Biomedical therapy is a treatment approach for psychological disorders that involves the use of medication and/or medical procedures. These biological interventions can be administered as a primary treatment or in conjunction with other forms of therapy, such as psychotherapy.

Biomedical Therapy

Therapeutic approaches for mental health can be broadly categorized into two primary types: psychological interventions, which focus on thoughts and behaviors, and biological interventions, which involve medical treatments. Both categories share the ultimate goal of alleviating psychological distress.

Psychological vs. Biological Interventions

Analyze the following case study. Based on the client's symptoms and stated preferences, which combination of treatment methods would be most appropriate to recommend as a starting point? Justify your reasoning by explaining how each recommended method addresses a specific aspect of the client's situation.

Treatment Plan Analysis

Somatic therapy, also called brain stimulation therapy, is a category of biomedical mental health treatments that act directly on the brain or nervous system rather than through talk-based psychotherapy or oral medication. These interventions are typically used when other treatments (e.g., psychotherapy or pharmacotherapy) have not adequately relieved symptoms, such as in treatment-resistant depression. Major forms include electroconvulsive therapy (ECT), transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS), deep brain stimulation (DBS), and vagal nerve stimulation (VNS), which differ in invasiveness and the brain site or nerve targeted.

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