Schizophrenia Treatment
Centers in Georgia
Schizophrenia is one of the most challenging mental health disorders and requires a professional approach to treating it. Atlanta Integrative Psychiatry created our schizophrenia treatment centers to help people learn to understand their illnesses and how they can manage their symptoms. We use a combination of therapies and prescription medications to empower people with schizophrenia to live their best lives possible.
What is Schizophrenia?
Schizophrenia is a mental health disorder that is classified as a thought disorder. It impacts how a person thinks, interprets their surroundings, and interacts with people. Communicating with others and understanding their own thought processes can prove difficult for someone with schizophrenia. When schizophrenia is severe, it can keep a person from being able to live on their own and manage their lives. With proper help received from schizophrenia treatment centers, a person can learn to understand their illness and address many of the symptoms.
How Does Schizophrenia Treatment in Atlanta Work?
When someone arrives at our schizophrenia treatment centers, we begin by performing a full assessment to understand their symptoms and situation. We operate on an outpatient basis, which means the individual travels to our facility but can continue to live in their own home. We created a modern, beautiful office setting that helps people feel at ease during their treatment sessions. In addition, we offer an array of psychotherapy options and prescription medications that help people with schizophrenia improve their symptoms and live up to their full potential.
Signs and Symptoms of Schizophrenia
Not every person has the exact same signs and symptoms of schizophrenia. However, many of them are quite common and include the following:
- Visual and auditory hallucinations (seeing and hearing things that are not real)
- Disorganized speech which others cannot follow or that includes thoughts not connected to the topic at hand
- Delusions
- Poor impulse control
- Inappropriate reactions to other people or stimuli
- Appearing unemotional for long periods of time
- Isolating from family and friends
- Unable to care for themselves, including cooking, bathing, and other daily tasks
- Combative behavior
How Is Schizophrenia Diagnosed?
When diagnosing someone, professional schizophrenia treatment centers follow the diagnostic criteria established in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Health Disorders. The individual must exhibit two or more of the following symptoms for a minimum of one month: delusions, hallucinations, disorganized speech, disorganized or catatonic behavior, and diminished emotional expression. These behaviors cannot be caused by external forces, such as having a substance use disorder. The person’s condition must also keep them from being able to meet the usual standards for participating fully in life and being responsible for their own care.
Medications for Schizophrenia
Prescription medications can offer tremendous help when it comes to managing symptoms. For this reason, schizophrenia treatment centers screen each person to see which ones can offer them effective help. The most commonly prescribed medications are antipsychotic drugs. They affect the production of dopamine in the brain, which helps control the symptoms of schizophrenia. It may take trying a few different types of medications and dosage levels to find the most effective one for each person.
Many people also take other medications to add to the efficacy of antipsychotic drugs. This can include anti-anxiety and anti-depressant prescription drugs. The choice of medications may depend on if the person taking them is willing and able to take the required dosage regularly. If not, the usage of injections, rather than daily pills, can be explored.
Therapy for Schizophrenia
Schizophrenia treatment centers typically offer different types of mental health therapies to people who have schizophrenia. For many, having a safe, private place to discuss their illness with a neutral party can be quite beneficial. When someone with schizophrenia attends a variety of therapy modalities, the process can help them learn to understand and manage their symptoms and have better relationships with others.
Our Treatment Approach
We believe that everyone who struggles with poor mental health deserves respect and compassion. At Atlanta Integrative Psychiatry, we meet each individual where they are and strive to win their trust so they open up to their full treatment experience. We never view treatment with a one-size-fits-all approach. We get to know the people who come to us for care and create a program that fits their unique needs.
When possible and appropriate, we include trusted family members in the treatment process. This allows them to understand what their loved ones experience and how to help them manage their lives more effectively. This can prove valuable whether the person with schizophrenia lives with others or independently.
Get Help At Our Schizophrenia Treatment Centers in Atlanta, Georgia
Do you have schizophrenia or know someone who does and want to find a highly effective treatment for it? Atlanta Integrative Psychiatry created our schizophrenia treatment centers to help people get the intensive treatment they need to help them improve their symptoms. We employ a staff of experienced clinicians who provide compassionate care in a modern, comfortable environment. We work with each person to understand their specific needs and set treatment goals for them. With a combination of different therapy modalities and FDA-approved medications, people with schizophrenia can enjoy improved mental health.
If you would like to talk to us about getting quality treatment for schizophrenia, contact us today. We are happy to answer any questions you have about our services.
