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Mental Health Assessments An assessment is an essential instrument for helping people know their mental health. Professionals employ a variety of tools for this purpose, including self-report and standardized tools. A mental status exam is one of the most frequently used. It permits counselors and doctors to look at the appearance, attitude, and activities. They can also track their mood thoughts, emotions, and mood. Signs and symptoms Mental health problems can cause people to change their mood, thoughts and behaviour. These can affect their ability to work and interact with other people. Mental illness is a serious health problem. Many of the same diseases that can affect physical health also affect mental health. Everyone experiences fluctuations in their mood. However, if the changes are extreme and last for a long time it could be a sign of mental illness. Some common symptoms are changes in sleep and eating habits or energy levels; an abrupt change in or decrease in emotion such as sadness, happiness or anger; difficulties remembering or concentrating; and feeling tired constantly. If you have concerns about your loved ones it's important to not ignore them. Early intervention can stop mental health issues from becoming worse. A lot of these changes are triggered by life events, like losing the job, family issues or an accident that is serious. It's important to get treatment for a mental illness so it doesn't impact your work and relationships. Certain of these disorders are treated with counselling or medication. Certain conditions require hospitalization. There are over 200 mental disorders that could be classified as bipolar disorder, schizophrenia anxiety disorders and depression. Some of these are very serious and could be life threatening. Some phobias are less severe and don't affect your daily life as severely. Mental health can be affected in a variety of ways, including genetics and genetic differences, life experiences stress, lifestyle choices and the way society treats its members. It's important to understand that mental illness isn't something to be ashamed of. Just like heart disease or diabetes it is treatable and improved. Mental illness is treatable, and many people recover with the right treatment. This can include psychotherapy (talk therapy) or medications like antidepressants and sedatives. Combining treatments is often the most effective. Self-help groups and support groups can be helpful for some people. History The background of mental health issues is a central part of any evaluation. A psychiatrist will also need to be aware of your medical history, including whether you have relatives with mental illness. They will inquire about your current medications, and any other drug or alcohol abuse you might have experienced in the past. In some instances, doctors may ask you to write down your symptoms in journals or bring a family or friend member along so they can hear the full story. For some people, a mental health assessment is a first step in finding treatment for a problem. Most often, it is initiated by a referral from a physician or other professional, but it can also be initiated by the patient themselves. The psychiatric examination will give professionals with the necessary information to make an appropriate diagnosis. Western civilization has considered mental illness as the result of supernatural forces or demonic possession for most of recorded history. This led to primitive treatments like drilling a small hole into the skull (trepanning). The 18th and 19th centuries saw the rise of a more humane approach to treating the mentally ill, as doctors began to abandon these superstitions and adopt logical explanations/theories for their patients. The term “mental health” is used in two ways: to designate a state of well-being; and as a broad concept that covers psychiatry as well as psychotherapy. Mental health is now being pushed to become an independent discipline. However, there has not been a complete distinction between it and psychotherapy. The definition of mental health has varied from culture to culture but the majority of systems contain elements such as self-realization, a sense of accomplishment; happiness; and mastery over one's surroundings. However, assessing mental health are influenced by cultural values that could exclude teenagers who have not fully developed their potential, people who have low incomes, those who reside in poor communities or who suffer discrimination and rejection. Other assessment tools can be used to determine the mental health of a person. They include the DSM-5 Checklist that the lists of disorders that are specific to each, and the Life Events Checklist which can detect potentially stressful or traumatic events in the life of a patient. Physical Examination A medical doctor or psychiatrist will usually conduct the physical examination of a patient who is suspected to have mental health issues. The examination can be part of a comprehensive physical exam or when the doctor suspects that a patient has a particular illness such as dementia, schizophrenia or addiction to drugs. The exam provides an opportunity to examine the person's appearance, emotional state, and how they respond to questions. The doctor who is examining will ask the patient questions about how long they have had their symptoms and any family history of mental health issues. The doctor will also inquire about any medication the person uses or has used in the past such as over-the-counter medicines and supplements. A psychiatric examination is essential because it can help figure out what is going on inside the person and what treatment is most likely to assist. A diagnosis is important and, depending on the final diagnosis, a person may need inpatient care or medication. The diagnosis is usually done in an inpatient hospital. However, some individuals may have a mental assessment conducted at home by an authorized professional. One of the main parts of an assessment of mental health is the assessment of cognitive function. This includes the capacity of paying attention, remembering and organizing information, resolving problems, and making decisions. It also includes basic social skills, such as the ability to interact with other people. The assessment of cognition is testing a person's spontaneity as well as the quality of their speech, by asking them to answer open-ended questions or complete standardized short stories. The evaluation of thought content involves the examination of a variety of things, like hallucinations that can be visual, auditory or tactile; delusions of special powers, status or persecution by others; paranoid thoughts or irrational fear or obsessions and compulsions; looseness of connections (making irrelevant connections between different subjects) as well as depressive and suicidal thoughts. Diagnostic tests, such as magnetic resonance imaging or blood tests, are usually required to complete a mental health evaluation. These tests can help to rule out other illnesses and disorders that may cause similar symptoms to mental illness. Tests The mental status exam is a method of evaluating the patient's condition by watching and asking questions. Health care professionals observe the patient's behavior and mood and level of activity, as well as their overall appearance. It could also comprise the use of written or verbal tests that include standardized rating systems that evaluate symptoms. The MMPI-2 test, for instance, is a common test that is used to measure depression. There are a variety of other tests that can be used to assess anxiety, intelligence, and autism. A patient's medical history and physical exam can provide important information that can aid in determining if their symptoms are related to a psychological condition or medical condition, such as hypothyroidism, diabetes or drug abuse. Some physical conditions like certain types of brain tumours or selective lesions, may also show up with similar symptoms as psychological disorders. These conditions could require laboratory or clinic testing such as blood tests, CT scans, or MRIs, as an adjunct to a full mental health evaluation. Psychological testing is an important component of a mental health assessment and can provide valuable information about how well the patient is able to think, remembers and interacts with others. The information obtained from these tests can assist the health care professional detect various symptoms, like hallucinations (the perception of a person, object or event that is not real) or a lack of association (the tendency to draw irrelevant connections between subjects). A psychiatric health evaluation may also include questions about the patient's family history of mental illness and other diseases. It will also inquire about how long symptoms have been present and their severity, as well as whether they interfere with everyday activities. It will also ask about any previous psychiatric illness the patient has had and what treatment they have received in the past. It is important for the patient to be honest about their responses since it will help the health care professional to gain a better understanding of the patient's condition. During the interview, the health care professional will listen to the patient's conversation and how they interact. They will also inquire about any drugs or supplements the patient is taking that are prescription or non-prescription and how they affect their mental health.