Treatment of mental illness

[Dianne]

Extraordinary advances have been made in the treatment of mental illness. As a result, many mental health disorders can now be treated nearly as successfully as physical disorders.
Most treatment methods for mental health disorders can be categorized as either

Somatic
Psychotherapeutic

Somatic treatments include drugs, electroconvulsive therapy, and other therapies that stimulate the brain (such as transcranial magnetic stimulation and vagus nerve stimulation).
Psychotherapeutic treatments include psychotherapy (individual, group, or family and marital), behavior therapy techniques (such as relaxation training or exposure therapy), and hypnotherapy.
Most studies suggest that for major mental health disorders, a treatment approach involving both drugs and psychotherapy is more effective than either treatment method used alone.
Psychiatrists are not the only mental health care practitioners trained to treat mental illness. Others include clinical psychologists, advanced practice nurses, and social workers. However, psychiatrists (and psychiatric nurse practitioners in some states) are the only mental health care practitioners licensed to prescribe drugs. Other mental health care practitioners practice psychotherapy primarily. Many primary care doctors and other types of doctors also prescribe drugs to treat mental health disorders.