Archive for April, 2009

Treating Trichotillmania – The Most Effective Options

Saturday, April 4th, 2009

Trichotillmania is an impulse control disorder which causes people to pull out their hair and is commonly referred to as the hair pulling disorder. This includes the act of pulling out eyelashes, scalp hair and eyebrows. Signs that someone suffers from trichotillmania include bald spots on their heads, or eyelashes. Trichotillmania was formally accepted as a disorder in the late 1980’s. Trichotillmania treatment is done using either psychological therapy or certain types of drugs.

Currently Trichotillmania treatment options are not available in a wide variety due in most part to the fact that the condition has only recently been accepted. The purpose of treatment is to help patients stop pulling out hair. The most successful treatment available at this time is habit reversal training. The steps in this treatment are designed to help an individual suffering from trichotillmania to recognize the environmental conditions which frequently trigger an episode.

This in conjunction with counseling will allow them to effectively cope with the conditions in a less destructive manor. This form of treatment varies widely in success. This success rate is largely based on the patient’s own ability to actually use the methods suggested in real life situations. Habit reversal training is currently considered the most effective trichotillmania treatment.

Forms of trichotillmania treatment involve the use of certain types of antidepressant drugs. The most common drug used for trichotillmania treatment is Clomipramine which is a tricyclic antidepressant. A double-blind study which was performed to test the effects of Clomipramine for the purpose of trichotillmania treatment suggested that it showed signs of significantly improving the symptoms commonly associated with this condition. Some psychologists believe that Clomipramine may eventually be considered the most effective trichotillmania treatment.

Other trichotillmania treatments have involved the use of Fluoxetine or Prozac to treat trichotillmania. All tests so far done on the effectiveness of Prozac have suggested little to no usefulness. These drugs also suffer from the potential for significant side effects. The use of Prozac is generally not a highly accepted form of trichotillmania treatment.

For patients suffering from trichotillmania it is important to take steps to improve the condition. The first step should always be to consult with your doctor about the condition. Your doctor should be able to make recommendations for different treatment options. Most experts in the field consider that trichotillmania treatment is best handled using psychological treatment methods and not through the use of drugs. This has generally shown to be a very effective form of treatment for those who are willing to take the necessary steps to find the causes and solutions to the problem.

Though Clomipamine has shown some success in treating this disorder, there is not a significant amount of data to prove these claims. It also suffers from the potential for side effects as with any drug. Prozac is generally considered a poor treatment method and in some studies the use of such drugs has suggested it can actually increase the problem.
Discover how you can join over 432 trichotillomania ex-sufferers who have already ended their years of pulling hair disorder, and had completely stop pulling hair using an easy 3 step therapy treatment system.

Anti Anxiety Medications

Saturday, April 4th, 2009

There are numerous anti anxiety medications and Prozac may be right for you. Prozac is a popular anti anxiety medication. There are so many that one will be right for you.

Don’t Worry If A Drug Has No Effect

It’s good to have many choices, because sometimes even certain medications may fail to work or have the desired effect. Don’t worry if this happens. All it means is that you need to try something else.

I like to make this point because I’ve been there myself. When you’re hurting and desperate for relief, and your medication fails to work, you can feel depressed and hopeless. I want to prevent that. You HAVE choices.

Prozac is an antidepressant and is prescribed more than any other antidepressant. It’s prescribed for panic disorder, depression OCD as well as other conditions.

Prozac works by making more serotonin available for the brain. It’s thought that serotonin plays a major part in depression and panic attacks, so if it’s not working properly, these problems can arise.

Panic disorder and anxiety responds well to treatment. Prozac has worked very well for patients in providing them with much relief from their ailments, so that they can function normally and happily.

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The Problem With Dual-Diagnosis in Addiction Treatment

Friday, April 3rd, 2009

Dual-diagnosis – diagnosing someone with both a substance abuse problem and a mental or emotional condition at the same time – is a growing trend in the field of addiction treatment. Alcoholics or drug addicts are treated for both their addiction and their other problems concurrently. However, many of those treated for dual-diagnosis may never get the help they need for either problem.

How can dual-diagnosis prevent successful treatment?

The major pitfall is the risk of labeling the person with a condition they don’t have. Just about every substance abuser displays symptoms of some disorder or other simply as a side effect of the addiction. Until they’re off the drugs and well on the road to recovery, it can be impossible to tell which symptoms are associated with the alcohol or drug addiction and which are not.

The effect is similar to that of any wrong diagnosis – when they’re treated for the wrong thing, the real problem they have continues, and may actually get worse.

A good example of the danger of incorrect diagnosis is a recent story about a woman who, while her family doctor was out of town, went to emergency reeling with irrational confusion, difficulty breathing, and heart palpitations. The doctors did blood tests and an EKG, and, finding nothing wrong, concluded that the problem was anxiety and prescribed Prozac.

Fortunately, the woman did not take the Prozac and the next day was able to see her own doctor. The problem turned out to be potassium deficiency – a condition which could have been fatal. Thanks to her family doctor’s correct diagnosis, the condition was easily resolved. Within a few hours of following his advice she was completely back to normal.

What would have happened had she accepted the ‘anxiety’ diagnosis and taken the Prozac?

- She would have had to cope with the possibly severe side effects of Prozac.

- She would be living with the stigma of being diagnosed as ‘mentally ill.’

- Since the diagnosis was incorrect, she might be desperately trying to figure out why she suddenly developed this ‘mental problem’ and would be assigning cause to situations in life that, in fact, were not really problems. This in itself can be extremely disruptive to a person’s life – she could suffer years of mental anguish trying to figure out what was wrong with her mind when, in fact, there was nothing wrong in the first place.

- She could have developed an addiction to or dependence on Prozac.

- Since her ‘mental problem’ did not resolve with the Prozac (how could it when it didn’t exist in the first place?), she may have been prescribed additional harmful drugs and had to cope with the side effects of those.

- Because she was driving herself crazy trying to figure out what was really wrong with her mind and never really finding an answer, she could have developed other emotional symptoms and been incorrectly labeled with yet another disorder.

- Last, but not least, she could have died from the undiagnosed and untreated potassium deficiency.

If she lived, her life could well have been ruined.

Had his happened to a drug addict who was already coping with sometimes severe physical, mental and emotional side effects from the drugs alone, what would their chances be of recovery? Pretty slim. The combination of the effects of drug addiction and the consequences of the incorrect diagnosis could really drive them around the bend.

Also, whatever started them on the road to drug addiction in the first place may never be found or addressed – which is pivotal in addressing addiction successfully – and if the person did manage to quit drinking or taking drugs, chances are they would revert.

If you or someone you care about is having a problem with alcohol or drug addiction, make sure they’re treated for that problem first. The treatment should be thorough – get them through withdrawal, put them on a nutrition and exercise program to get their body back in shape and enable them to get rid of more of the drugs in their system and, when they’re in better shape, dig into what caused the addiction in the first place so those issues can be addressed, and then develop a program for them to follow when they leave rehab. This is the sequence followed in a good addiction treatment center.

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Antidepressant And Menopause – Medication For Menopause

Friday, April 3rd, 2009

Menopause is an extremely difficult period in a woman’s life. How the woman deals with the bodily changes occurring in her system is up to her and the doctor she is working with. It is important to know all of your treatment options for the symptoms you may have during menopause. There are hot flashes, mood swings, depression, weight gain, loss of sexual appetite, and headaches. Menopause and Prozac seem to go hand in hand for those who experience menopause symptoms to the extreme.

First, let us look at what Prozac has been used to treat. Prozac was originally designed to help those who suffered from depression. During the study, for this pill it was also determined that those who were in menopause and treating depression with Prozac had less hot flashes. So now, we know that menopause and Prozac go well together. You can treat two symptoms of menopause if you decide you need Prozac. Keep in mind that there are natural methods to treating depression and hot flashes so you if you have doubts about taking a manufactured drug you might try these methods first.

Menopause and Prozac has a nice ring to it if you have found the natural methods are not helping you. Some women are more affected by depression, mood swings due to the hormone imbalance, and they need stronger acting medications. Another medication you may consider when in menopause is Zoloft for depression though it may not treat the hot flashes as Prozac does.

When it is your body you are dealing with it is important to be comfortable with the treatment you are seeking. You may have adverse reactions to one or the other drug listed above. Therefore, you might find that you are not treating hot flashes with Zoloft or you might find that Prozac works better for you. Speak with your doctor about the side effects you may have while taking this medication and keep in mind that if you are still seeking a natural way to treat depression the two will counteract the effects you are seeking and cause severe depression.

Menopause and Prozac tend to be to peas in a pod when you are looking to relieve yourself of menopause symptoms. It is important to understand what affects manufactured medications can have on your body before taking them as well as trying the natural method first if that would make treatment more comfortable for you. Menopause is a difficult time in your life and you should not have to suffer unduly.

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