mental health

Source: SeekWellness Editor
Mental disorders are common health conditions.

Getting Help: Locate Services

If unsure where to go for help, talk to someone you trust who has experience in mental health—for example, a doctor, nurse, social worker, or religious counselor. Ask their advice on where to seek treatment. If there is a university nearby, its departments of psychiatry or psychology may offer private and/or sliding-scale fee clinic treatment options. Otherwise, check the Yellow Pages under "mental health," "health," "social services," "suicide prevention," "crisis intervention services," "hotlines," "hospitals," or "physicians" for phone numbers and addresses. In times of crisis, the emergency room doctor at a hospital may be able to provide temporary help for a mental health problem, and will be able to tell you where and how to get further help.

Listed below are the types of people and places that will make a referral to, or provide, diagnostic and treatment services.

• Family doctors
• Mental health specialists, such as psychiatrists, psychologists, social workers, or mental health counselors
• Religious leaders/counselors
• Health maintenance organizations
• Community mental health centers
• Hospital psychiatry departments and outpatient clinics
• University- or medical school-affiliated programs
• State hospital outpatient clinics
• Social service agencies
• Private clinics and facilities
• Employee assistance programs
• Local medical and/or psychiatric societies

Mental Health Resources

MEDLINEPlus, a service of the National Library of Medicine, provides health information from NIH and outside organizations (also in Spanish and other languages), dictionaries, hospitals, and physicians.

ClinicalTrials.gov, a service of the National Library of Medicine, lists federally and privately supported research using human volunteers.

NREPP, a service of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, is a searchable database of interventions for the prevention and treatment of mental and substance use disorders.

Whether dealing with a crisis, coping with a mental disorder, or just feeling overwhelmed with life, we all go through difficult periods in our life. When life feels like it's too much of a strain, a little bit of support can go a long way towards helping us cope - that is what The Bright Side is all about.

Updated: 09/30/2005