Medication Management

Your medication management program might include anti-anxiety medications to reduce symptoms of generalized anxiety disorders or panic attacks. You might receive antidepressants to treat social anxiety and panic disorders. Generalized anxiety disorder might include a benzodiazepine. Short-acting benzodiazepines are often prescribed to treat acute anxiety symptoms like those you experience during a panic attack. 

Things like benzodiazepines can reduce severe anxiety symptoms but are best as a short-term treatment because of their addictive qualities. Working with a healthcare team during mental health treatment can ensure you are monitored for addictive symptoms.

Mood stabilizers might be prescribed for acute management of mood changes associated with other mental health issues. Mood stabilizers like lithium are commonly prescribed to treat depression alongside an antidepressant and bipolar disorder. Prescriptions for lithium require regular monitoring for thyroid and kidney function.

You might be prescribed anticonvulsant medications in addition to mood stabilizers. Sometimes a mixture of lithium and anticonvulsant medicines works best for people with bipolar disorder.

Your team might prescribe antipsychotic medications to help overcome hallucinations or delusions associated with schizophrenia, severe depression, or bipolar disorder. Antipsychotics like aripiprazole can be prescribed for depression, bipolar disorder, and schizophrenia. Some antipsychotic medications require regular assessments for glucose levels, weight, and lipid levels. 

Specific symptoms, such as hallucinations and agitation, can disappear within a few days of starting antipsychotic medication. Other symptoms may take several weeks to come into effect. This is why it's so important to stick with whatever prescription treatment your care team advises you.

Antidepressants like amitriptyline or mirtazapine can be used to relieve chronic symptoms of depression. These are prescribed for depressive disorders, anxiety disorders, bipolar disorder, and PTSD.

Antidepressants commonly include things like SSRIs, SNRIs, and NDRIs. These medications are prescribed to improve systems related to mental health disorders like anxiety and depression but with fewer side effects than other medications. Antidepressants can take between four and eight weeks before they improve. So it's important to continue with your prescribed dosage before deciding whether the medicine is effective. 

If you are sensitive to side effects like headaches, upset stomach, or sexual dysfunction, you might start with a very low dose and have your medication management team increase the dose over a slower amount of time or adjust the time of day when you take your medication.