Understanding Psychiatry: What Does a Psychiatrist Do?

In the United States, there are about 28,000 psychiatrists employed, and there is actually a shortage of them.

The job outlook for psychiatrists will continue to grow, but many people still aren’t entirely sure what they can do for people.

Are you asking “What does a psychiatrist do?” Read this article to learn more about what psychiatry is and how it is helpful.

What Exactly Is Psychiatry? 

First things first, psychiatry is a branch of medicine that focuses on diagnosing and treating mental and emotional illnesses. They can also help with behavioral disorders as well.

A psychiatrist is technically a medical doctor, like an M.D. or D.O, except they specialize in mental health. Psychiatrists are qualified to help treat physical and mental symptoms of psychological problems.

Many people seek psychiatry services for all kinds of reasons. It can range from having panic attacks to thoughts of suicide to hearing voices or to hearing hallucinations. It can also range from just feeling sad, anxious, stressed, or not being able to function.

The Difference Between a Psychiatrist and Psychologist 

If you are trying to find help for any of these problems, you may be trying to decide whether you want to see a psychiatrist or a psychologist.

As we said earlier, a psychiatrist is a medical doctor, meaning they went to medical school and did a residency. They also got special training in psychiatry to be able to treat you as best as possible. They can also prescribe you medicine and other medical treatments.

However, on the other hand, a psychologist doesn’t go to medical school. They get an advanced degree, normally in clinical psychology. They will have extensive training and can help treat mental disorders with psychotherapy.

But a psychologist cannot prescribe you any medication, so if you think you need medication, you may need to see a psychiatrist instead.

How to Become a Psychiatrist 

If you don’t need treatment but want to become a psychiatrist, there are certain steps that you will need to take. It takes a lot of work to become a psychiatrist, but it’s important to do because you want to make sure that you give your patients the best care possible.

If you want to become a psychiatrist, you need to complete medical school. After you do that, you’ll also need to take a written exam and get a state license to be able to practice medicine.

After that, you will have to do four years of psychiatry residency. During your first year, you will work with all kinds of patients and all kinds of different medical illnesses.

For the next three years after that, you will work on learning how to diagnose and treat mental health issues and learn the different types of psychotherapy. You will have to learn how to prescribe different medications and what they can treat as well.

After your residency is over, you’ll need to take a written and oral exam that is administered by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology in order to become board-certified.

After you get certified, you’ll need to get re-certified every ten years.

What Does a Psychiatrist Do?

If you go to see a psychiatrist, you may want to know what you should expect from your appointment.

A psychiatrist will ask you what all of your physical and mental symptoms are, and they will come up with a diagnosis for you and a treatment plan in order to help you recover.

They can provide you psychotherapy treatment and/or prescribe you medication to treat it as well.

Some of the other things a psychiatrist can do include:

• Providing urgent care for mental illness
• Admit you to a hospital
• Refer you to other doctors
• Provide advice on lifestyle changes
• Help you manage long-term mental health problems

A psychiatrist will be able to do so much more than this as well.

How to Diagnose Patients

When you go to see a psychiatrist, you may be wondering how they determine what to diagnose you with.

Since psychiatrists are technically physicians, they have access to all kinds of medical laboratories and run all kinds of psychological tests.

They can use these and look at the whole picture of the patient’s mental and physical state as well.

Their education and their training will help give them some insight into what you may be dealing with, and once they have a diagnosis, they will be able to give you a treatment plan as well.

Normally psychiatrists will base their diagnosis off the APA’s Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5). This book has all kinds of descriptions and symptoms of all kinds of different mental disorders.

Different Types of Medications They Can Prescribe

A psychiatrist will be able to prescribe medication to help treat you if it’s actually necessary. Sometimes medication and psychotherapy are necessary to treat mental illness.

There are different categories of medications that can help treat different mental illnesses.

Antidepressants

Antidepressants are great for panic disorders, PTSD, and depression. They can also help treat anxiety disorders, OCD, eating disorders, and borderline personality disorder.

Antipsychotic Medications

These medications can help treat psychotic symptoms that come along with schizophrenia and bipolar disorders.

If you are experiencing hallucinations and delusions, these medications could help you.

Sedatives and Anxiolytics

These prescription medications are normally used to treat insomnia and anxiety.

If you have problems with these, you may want to see a psychiatrist to get these medications prescribed and to learn what lifestyle changes you can make to help with this.

Learn More About What Does a Psychiatrist Do?

Seeing a psychiatrist can be really helpful for some people. If you are thinking about finding one, ask your friends and family for some recommendations.

If you are still asking “what does a psychiatrist do?” after reading this article, don’t worry, we have more info for you as well!

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