Top 7 Mental Health Treatment Options In The U.S.

Everyone will have some mental health challenges throughout the course of their lives. People with diagnosable mental illnesses may experience more pronounced hurdles that require greater attention and care, especially during times of stress. Whether someone has a diagnosable mental health condition or not, it’s important to be aware of the resources available to help you process and manage tough emotions or other mental health symptoms, and move forward with a better-informed mindset. Learn about seven of the top mental health treatment techniques in the U.S. and how they work to help manage symptoms.

Popular Treatments For Mental Health Issues

The mental health treatments listed below are some of the more widely known methods. It’s common and sometimes recommended for people in treatment to partake in one or more of these methods.

1. Psychotherapy

Psychotherapy, also known as talk therapy, is a type of mental health treatment that consists of scheduled sessions between an individual and a licensed healthcare provider. These sessions entail timed discussions, during which the provider helps the client process situations, understand circumstances differently, broaden their perspective, learn to set boundaries, and more, depending on what the person wishes to focus on.

The goal of psychotherapy is to help people identify problematic behaviors and/or thought patterns and work toward making changes. Providers are typically social workers, psychologists, or therapists, and sessions may be held one-on-one, in groups, or among couples or families. The therapist serves as a non-biased figure, allowing those in therapy to speak freely in a safe space.

Some of the benefits of psychotherapy include:

• developing healthy coping mechanisms
• identifying and addressing problematic thoughts, actions, and feelings
• improving relationships (with oneself and others)

There are many kinds of psychotherapy depending on what someone is looking to improve.

Some of the types of psychotherapy include:

• behavioral therapy
• cognitive behavioral therapy
• dialectical behavior therapy
• humanistic therapy
• interpersonal therapy
• psychoanalysis
• psychodynamic therapy
• supportive therapy

2. Pharmacotherapy

Pharmacotherapy, also known as pharmacological therapy, is a form of medical treatment that utilizes one or more prescription medications to improve or regulate a person’s condition and prevent future symptoms. Depending on the condition and severity of symptoms, a psychiatrist may prescribe medications to treat mental health disorders.

Medications prescribed for mental health treatment are known as psychotropic or psychotherapeutic medications. These medications specifically act on the brain’s neurotransmitters, which are cells used by the central nervous system to transmit messages to other cells in the body.

Some of the most common mental health medications include:

• antidepressants: used to treat depression, anxiety disorders, obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), and some personality disorders
• antipsychotics: used to treat schizophrenia, schizoaffective disorder, bipolar disorder, and delusional disorders
• anxiolytics: used to treat anxiety disorders
• depressants: used to treat anxiety disorders and panic attacks
• hypnotics: used to treat sleep disorders
• mood stabilizers: used to treat bipolar disorder, schizoaffective disorder, and other mood disorders
• stimulants: used to treat attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and some depression cases

When prescribed medication for a mental health issue, it’s critical to work closely with a psychiatrist and to take the medication only as prescribed.

3. Support Groups

Support groups are groups of people with a common interest, problem, and/or goal who meet to provide one another with mutual support, camaraderie, and fellowship. Support groups are among the most widely accessible forms of mental health treatment because the majority of them are free to join and participate in. Support groups connect like-minded people and create a safe space to share experiences, challenges, and circumstances, and to seek, offer, and receive ongoing support.

There are many types of support groups for people with mental health issues, including addiction. Many of these groups follow a 12-step program of recovery.

Some mental health support groups include:

• Adult Children of Alcoholics & Dysfunctional Families
• Alcoholics Anonymous (AA)
• Co-Dependents Anonymous (CoDA)
• Depression and Bipolar Support Alliance
• Eating Disorders Anonymous
• Emotions Anonymous
• Food Addicts Anonymous
• Gamblers Anonymous
• Narcotics Anonymous (NA)
• Neurotics Anonymous
• Overeaters Anonymous
• Sex and Love Addicts Anonymous

These groups are recognized as being anonymous because last names are not required to join. Members acknowledge one another on a first-name basis and privacy is of the utmost importance. Members are not required to disclose their address, occupation, or any other identifying information aside from their first names and their willingness to recover.

Dealing with a mental health issue can feel lonely and isolating at times. It can feel like you’re the only one dealing with whatever you’re going through. Support groups bring a greater sense of normalcy to conditions and allow people with these conditions and/or symptoms to know there are others facing similar challenges—and most importantly, that they are never alone. Many support groups are available in person and/or online.

4. Holistic Practices

Many holistic practices are often used in tandem with other mental health treatment methods to help people manage mental health issues. Holistic treatments consider the interconnectedness of the mind, body, and spirit, and how all three components work to support physical, emotional, mental, and emotional wellness.

Some examples of holistic practices include:

• acupuncture
• aromatherapy
• art therapy
• biofeedback
• breath work
• chiropractic care
• herbal remedies
• massage therapy
• meditation
• music therapy
• reflexology
• Reiki
• tai chi
• yoga

Holistic practices are designed to address the root cause of disease or malady and use a whole-person approach to release it from the body. Many of these methods specifically target stress management, whether it’s learning how to handle stress in real time or release stress that’s stored in the body. Stress is one of the main causes of illness, so learning how to manage and release stress may improve mental health. Holistic practices, such as those mentioned above, can be utilized by people with and without mental health issues.

5. Eye Movement Desensitization And Reprocessing (EMDR)

EMDR is a technique used in psychotherapy to help people with processing trauma. It is supported by the notion that distressing experiences and ongoing emotional trauma occur because the memory was not sufficiently processed. To help with processing, EMDR incorporates the use of eye movements while a person recalls traumatic memories. The pairing of eye movements and memory recall work to change the way the trauma is stored in the brain and reduce distressing emotions associated with the memory, according to the American Psychological Association (APA). APA supports EMDR as an effective method for treating post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

6. Brain Stimulation Therapies

Brain stimulation therapies are more intensive mental health treatments that may be used when there is little or no response to other treatments. These therapies use electricity or magnetic fields to increase or reduce activity in certain areas of the brain. Brain stimulation therapy may help with conditions such as depression, substance use disorder, and obsessive-compulsive disorder. People who receive brain stimulation therapy must continue other therapies, such as psychotherapy and medication, as guided by their healthcare provider, according to the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH).

There are several types of brain stimulation therapies, which include:

• deep brain stimulation (DBS), which involves surgically implanting electrodes into the brain to deliver electrical currents to specific regions
• electroconvulsive therapy (ECT), also known as electroshock therapy, which induces controlled seizures to improve or alleviate mental health symptoms
• repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS), which delivers magnetic pulses on the scalp to stimulate nerve cells
• vagus nerve stimulation (VNS), a surgical procedure where a device is implanted under the skin to send electrical pulses through the vagus nerve

Over time, more brain stimulation therapies have been approved, targeting different conditions and areas of the brain. These methods show promise for people whose conditions are unresponsive to other forms of mental health treatment.

7. Hospitalization/Residential Treatment

When the symptoms of mental health issues are severe and/or there is a risk to safety, hospitalization is often the most effective means of treatment. Hospitalization can provide people in crisis with a secure environment to be assessed by mental health professionals, who can collaborate with the person’s doctors (if applicable) and determine a suitable route for ongoing treatment. In some cases, hospitalization may immediately segue into residential treatment. Hospitalization is a short-term solution and residential treatment is a longer-term means of care.

In residential treatment, people with mental health conditions can receive individualized, comprehensive care to help them manage their condition. At Bedrock Recovery Center, the short-term Pathways program is specifically designed to support people with relapsing mental health conditions. In treatment, people can participate in various therapies to help them learn more about their condition, potential causes and/or aggravating circumstances, and develop tools for emotional regulation and other symptom management.

Mental health is a journey, and recovery doesn’t happen overnight. Rather, it takes time and effort, as well as patience with oneself while learning to implement new techniques and thinking processes. For some people, residential treatment can mark the beginning of forward-moving changes and a richer quality of life.

Mental Health Treatment At Bedrock

If you are dealing with a mental health issue, you don’t have to handle it alone. Help is available whenever you’re ready. Call Bedrock Recovery Center for more information today.