Psychopharmacological Methods

"The troubling increase in treatment resistance in psychiatry has many culprits: the rise of biomedical psychiatry and corresponding sidelining of psychodynamic and psychosocial factors; the increased emphasis on treating the symptoms rather than the person; and a greater focus on the electronic medical record rather than the patient, all of which point to a breakdown in the person-centered prescriber-patient relationship. Psychodynamic Psychopharmacology illuminates a new path forward. It examines the psychological and interpersonal mechanisms of pharmacological treatment resistance, integrating research on evidence-based prescribing processes with psychodynamic insights and skills to enhance treatment outcomes for patients who are difficult to treat. The first part of the book explores the evidence base that guides how, rather than simply what, to prescribe. It describes precisely what psychodynamic psychopharmacology is and why its emphasis on combining the often-neglected psychosocial aspects of medication with biomedical considerations provides a more optimized approach to addressing treatment resistance. Part II delves into the psychodynamics that contribute to pharmacological treatment resistance, both when patients' ambivalence about their illness, the medication itself, or their prescriber manifests in nonadherence and when medications support a negative identity or are used as replacements for healthy capacities. Readers will gain basic skills for addressing the psychological and interpersonal dynamics that underpin both scenarios and will be better positioned to ameliorate interferences with the healthy use of medications. The final section of the book offers detailed technical recommendations for addressing pharmacological treatment resistance. It tackles issues that include countertransference-driven irrational prescribing; primitive dynamics, such as splitting and projective identification; and the overlap between psychopharmacological treatment resistance and the dynamics of treatment nonadherence and nonresponse in integrated and collaborative medical care settings. By putting the individual patient back at the center of the therapeutic equation, psychodynamic psychopharmacology, as outlined in this book, offers a model that moves beyond compliance and emphasizes instead the alliance between patient and prescriber. In doing so, it empowers patients to become more active contributors in their own recovery"--

Integrating Psychotherapy and Psychopharmacology: A Handbook for Clinicians is a practical guide for the growing number of mental-health practitioners searching for information on treatments that combine psychopharmacology, psychotherapy, and psychosocial rehabilitation. Research shows that combined approaches are among the most effective ways to treat an increasing number of psychiatric disorders. However, though these combined treatments are becoming the everyday practice of psychiatrists, psychologists, and other mental-health professionals, identifying the right treatment plan can be notoriously difficult, and clinicians are often left scrambling to answer questions about how to design and customize their treatment strategies. In Integrating Psychotherapy and Psychopharmacology, readers will find these questions fully addressed and the answers explained, and they’ll come away from the book with a toolbox full of strategies for helping their patients improve symptoms, achieve remission, and stay well using a combination of drug and psychological treatments.

This thought-provoking book covers the full range of psychopharmacologic practice in textbook fashion, offering a fresh and comprehensive self-examination. Unlike conventional texts of psychopharmacology, this text speaks directly to clinicians who have started to question the limitations of psychopharmacologic claims and the rigid confines of DSM-5 diagnoses. Drawing from their clinical and research experience as well as new literature, the well-published authors provide a new perspective that encourages readers to reevaluate established practices and embrace that medication is just one component of treatment and has limits. The book could be used by psychiatric residents in their course of study, by clinical psychology students taking a psychopharmacology course, or by psychiatrists curious to get a readable but comprehensive look at new critical viewpoints in psychopharmacology that have changed since they were taught. Many neuroscience students who are looking for a review of clinical effects to guide their basic research may also find the proposed text more useful than those texts that collate clinical trials. Current texts are for specialized scientists or are part of multi-authored texts which list drugs alphabetically with no conceptual framework, or books that pretend that each biochemical drug property has a clear and known clinical result presented in cartoon style. Some lesser known texts for psychology or nursing students are not authoritative. Others aimed at patients or families are too simplistic for clinicians. The authors’ goal was to create a unified text expressing their view of psychopharmacology, its evidence base, the unity of its essential principles, and its independence of DSM or ICD diagnosis. Several new history books describe the "rise and fall" of psychopharmacology, the corruption of big pharma and the failure of large controlled clinical trials. Psychopharmacology Reconsidered: A Concise Guide Exploring the Limits of Diagnosis and Treatment ensures that young clinicians are aware of and understand this critical zeitgeist but aware also of the essential core of psychopharmacology and the evidence upon which it rests.

This jargon-free guide is suitable for all trainee and registered health professionals who require knowledge and understanding of drugs used in the treatment of mental health conditions for prescribing or administering purposes. A life-saving pocketbook that you can easily carry anywhere you go! Introductory material provides a background on psychotropic drugs, the etiology of mental illness, some of the commonly used drugs in practice and brief notes on common non-pharmacological interventional options. It also examines biochemical and neurodevelopmental theories and the link to the pathophysiology of mental illness as well as clinical decision making. The central chapters of the book provide comprehensive coverage of all the major medications used in mental health. Each focuses on a specific class of drug, detailing the most commonly used medicines, including side effects, average doses, contra-indications and clinical management interventions that may be required. At the end of each chapter a series of review questions enable readers to review their learning, and theory is clearly related to practice throughout.

PART 1: THE NATURE OF ANXIETY. 1. Benefits and Challenges of Integrated Treatment / Mark D. Muse, Bret A. Moore, Stephen M. Stahl. 2. A Biopsychosocial Approach to Anxiety / Allison M. Greene, Christopher R Bailey & Alexander Neumeister. 3. The Pharmacological Treatment of Anxiety Disorders Across the Lifespan / Robert M. Julien. 4. The Psychosocial Treatment of Anxiety Disorders Across the Lifespan / Michael Sweeney, Jessica Levitt, Robert Westerholm, Clare Gaskins & Christina Lipinski. PART 2: TREATMENT. 5. Generalized Anxiety Disorders / Joseph Comaty and Claire Advokat. 6. Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder / Jonathan S. Abramowitz & Ryan J. Jacoby. 7. Acute Stress Disorder / Angela Nickerson & Richard A. Bryant. 8. Posttraumatic Stress Disorder / Amy M. Williams, Greer Richardson & Tara E. Galovski. 9. Panic Disorder / Meredith E. Charney, M. Alexandra Kredlow, Eric Bui & Naomi M. Simon. 10. Social Anxiety Disorder / Catherine Kariuki and Dan J. Stein. 11. Specific Phobia / David S. Shearer, S. Cory Harmon, Robert D. Younger & Christopher S. Brown. 12. Separation Anxiety Disorder / George M. Kapalka & Callandra Peters.

A fully revised and updated edition of this unique and authoritative reference The award-winning A Guide to Treatments that Work , published in 1998, was the first book to assemble the numerous advances in both clinical psychology and psychiatry into one accessible volume. It immediately established itself as an indispensable reference for all mental health practitioners. Now in a fully updated edition,A Guide to Treatments that Work, Second Edition brings together, once again, a distinguished group of psychiatrists and clinical psychologists to take stock of which treatments and interventions actually work, which don't, and what still remains beyond the scope of our current knowledge. The new edition has been extensively revised to take account of recent drug developments and advances in psychotherapeutic interventions. Incorporating a wealth of new information, these eminent researchers and clinicians thoroughly review all available outcome data and clinical trials and provide detailed specification of methods and procedures to ensure effective treatment for each major DSM-IV disorder. As an interdisciplinary work that integrates information from both clinical psychology and psychiatry, this new edition will continue to serve as an essential volume for practitioners of every kind: psychiatrists, psychologists, clinical social workers, counselors, and mental health consultants.

"Most books about psychopharmacology focus heavily on the basic science involved and describe the currently available medications, including brief rationales for their use as well as their dosages and their side effects. Others are more for the general public, intended to help them understand how psychopharmacology might be helpful. This book is different. The goal is to teach the reader what medicines are available and what their characteristics are as well as teach very valuable skills: how to think thoroughly and methodically when assessing a patient, when reviewing research data (both basic and clinical), and when thinking through, developing, and monitoring the most effective clinical recommendations for patients. Rather than a lesson in elementary patient assessment, this book is an attempt to help readers identify weaknesses in their practice style and improve them where psychopharmacology is involved"--

This jargon-free guide is suitable for all trainee and registered health professionals who require knowledge and understanding of drugs used in the treatment of mental health conditions for prescribing or administering purposes. A life-saving book that you can carry anywhere you go! Introductory material provides a background on psychotropic drugs, the etiology of mental illness, some of the commonly used drugs in practice and brief notes on common non-pharmacological interventional options. It also examines the pathophysiology of mental illness and clinical decision making. The central chapters provide comprehensive coverage of all the major medications used in the most common mental health disorders, detailing key drugs and including side effects, average doses, contra-indications and precautions, and clinical management interventions. Case studies, multiple choice questions and summary tasks in each chapter enable readers to clearly relate theory to practice and thoroughly review their learning. The second edition of this best-selling text has been completely revised to include: updated information and refreshed case studies throughout; more activities for self-study and interactive learning, including multiple choice questions; an emphasis on new ways of working within mental health settings, such as non-restrictive practice; a completely new chapter on alcohol and substance misuse.

Describes the latest advances in psychopharmacology - one of the most rapidly developing fields in modern science. This latest edition has been updated to cover new developments in drug therapy and research including newly introduced antipsychotics, antidepressants and antidementia drugs. Sections on the treatment of depression and dementia have been revised to include new developments in treatment strategies. It will be welcomed for its essentially clinical and psychological approach to modern pharmaceuticals, their therapeutic uses and limitations, adverse reactions and future directions for research.

Begins a series for mental health professionals describing the major developments and changes in the profession resulting from the introduction of managed care. Presents both general and specific strategies for combining medication with other treatment modalities, whether the therapist or another clinician has prescribed the medicine. The four specific strategies are combining treatment modalities, enhancing compliance, incorporating psychoeducational interventions, and preventing relapse and recurrence. Annotation copyright by Book News, Inc., Portland, OR