There are a number of treatment options for mental illness, both in terms of types of treatment (medication, therapy, etc) and manner of treatment (hospitalization, weekly sessions, rehab). As part of looking at the course of treatment for mental illness, we’re going to take a close look at different kinds of treatment, their pros and cons, and how they will impact your polycule.
We’ll be covering:
- Medication
- “talk” therapy
- psychotherapy
- Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT)
- Family Systems therapy
- others
- Alternative therapies
- art therapy
- music therapy
- animal therapy
- alternative therapies to avoid
- Alternative medicine
- herbal treatments
- massage
- acupuncture
- other
- Home treatment
- exercise
- sunlight
- dark chocolate
- meditation
- self expression
- other
- Treatment Intensity
- Hospitalization
- Therapy sessions
- Medication only
- Partial day programs
- Rehab programs
Finding Treatment Options
Most pepole default directly to medication and talk therapy, exploring other options only if medication and talk therapy don’t work for them. This is the approach to treatment that mental health care in the US is set up for. However, you don’t need to feel trapped in one treatment approach. It may be harder to find resources for other approaches to treatment, but if it works for you, it’s worth it.
Some good places to find non-standard resources that are available to you, with or without insurance, include: you local hospital, your local welfare office (or equivalent), your local homeless shelter, your local Children and Youth Services office (or equivalent), your local halfway house, your local domestic violence shelter. Why these places? Your doctor, your shrink, and your insurance company will have all the information about the standard treatment options (medication and talk therapy). The homeless shelter, welfare office, and yes Children and Youth Services (and others I listed) are routinely needing to help the people that the standard treatment doesn’t work for, so they will often have a list of ALL local resources, and many of them are willing to give recommendations so you can avoid becoming one of the people they need to help.
This discussion is part of the Polyamory and Mental Illness Blog Series