Integrative psychiatry is a form of holistic psychiatry that seeks to combine alternative treatments, nutritional guidelines, exercise, and relaxation techniques with traditional psychiatric treatments to heal mental illness. Some patients don't respond well to traditional psychiatric treatments involving medications and talk therapy. Integrative psychiatry generally seeks to relieve the symptoms of mental illness in all patients and to help keep patients symptom-free and non-reliant on regular psychiatric care. While practitioners of integrative psychiatry may emphasize changes in diet and lifestyle to help treat the symptoms of mental illness, they may often prescribe psychiatric medication or recommend forms of psychotherapy. The discipline generally seeks to treat mental illness by addressing every aspect of a patient's lifestyle and physical habits, and not just the mental disorder itself.
The goal of integrative psychiatry is typically to provide treatment and support for the patient on the mental, physical, emotional, spiritual, and energetic levels. Integrative psychiatrists often believe that mental illness can be the result of disturbances in any one of or all of these areas. By offering treatment for such disturbances, integrative psychiatrists generally hope to bring to patient to a state of complete wellness, in which further medications or psychotherapy are not needed.
Evidence suggests that the success of mental illness treatment may rely heavily on the relationship between patient and caregiver, regardless of the form of treatment used. When a patient has a high level of trust in the form of treatment being offered, this may increase the treatment's chances of success. In addition, many mental disorders may be tied to dietary and lifestyle choices. Vitamin or herbal supplements, exercise regimens, and dietary changes may have a profound effect on the symptoms of mental disorder.
Often, people who undergo integrative psychiatry treatments are those for whom traditional psychiatric treatments, using medications and various forms of psychotherapy, have not worked well. In addition to nutritional changes and changes in physical activity, patients may be asked to make changes in their sleep patterns and habits of socializing. The patient's relationship to his emotions may also be explored, the patient may be encouraged to change this relationship.
Relaxation techniques often form a part of integrative psychiatry treatments. These techniques can help relieve stress, boost immunity, and lower blood pressure. They may also help relieve symptoms of anxiety and depression in patients suffering from mental illness.
Integrative psychiatrists may also perform bodywork to help patients recover fully. Reiki, acupuncture, massage, and yoga may be incorporated into the treatment plan. Guided meditation techniques may be used, and patients will generally learn breathing exercises.
