Services:

Picture Hills Psychiatric Center offers diagnostic evaluations, outpatient therapy, and medication management for patients and families in need of mental health treatment.  Depending upon the situation, medications and/or therapy may be recommended.
 
Examples include:
Individual therapy- one on one therapy that emphasizes the importance of the patient speaking to the therapist as the main means of expressing and resolving issues.  At times, the therapist may suggest that family members / significant others are brought into the therapy session in order to enhance the process.  
 
Family therapy- therapy in which the family is the unit of treatment or intervention. During the course of therapy, many or all members may be seen. Sessions may involve one or two members or the whole family. Sessions may focus on individual members or relationship pairs within the family; however, the focus is to change interaction patterns at the family level
 
Pre-marital, Couples, and Marital Therapy-  therapy in which the clinician works with individuals around a broad range of problems including: communication, infidelity, financial stress, differences in parenting styles, and impact of addiction or psychiatric disorders on relationships.  

Common Conditions we Treat (Click the condition for a definition):

Alcohol Abuse / Dependence
Alcohol dependence is characterized by addiction to alcohol, inability to stop drinking, and repeated interpersonal, school- or work-related problems that can be directly attributed to the use of alcohol. Alcoholism can have serious consequences, affecting an individual's health and personal life.
Agoraphobia
Agoraphobia is an irrational fear of being trapped in places or situations where escape could be difficult or impossible. People with agoraphobia often will not leave the house.
Anorexia
Anorexia nervosa is an eating disorder. It occurs when a person's obsession with dieting and exercise leads to excessive weight loss. People are generally considered anorexic when they refuse to maintain their body weight at or above 85 percent of their ideal body weight.
Anxiety
Generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) causes chronic, exaggerated worrying and anxiety about everyday life. Everyone worries at times, but people with GAD can never relax and usually anticipate the worst; the intensity and pervasiveness of their worry interferes with normal functioning at school, work, and in their relationships. The worrying is often not related to anything in particular. Instead, each day provokes tension and anxiety.

People with GAD often worry excessively about health, family, work, or money. The worry is so severe that it interferes with their ability to live their lives.
ADHD (Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder)
Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a chronic behavioral disorder of childhood onset (by age seven). It is characterized by behavior that is hyperactive, impulsive, and/or inattentive. These behaviors must persist for at least six months and be present in two environments (home, work, or school). ADHD affects children, adolescents, and adults. There are three types of ADHD:
  • Inattentive (classic "ADD")–predominantly inattentive
  • Hyperactive-impulsive–predominantly hyperactive and impulsive
  • Combined–combined inattentive, hyperactive, and impulsive
Autism
Autism is a complex brain disorder resulting in social, behavioral and language problems. People with autism have difficulty communicating and forming relationships. They may be preoccupied, engage in repetitive behaviors, and exhibit marked inflexibility.

Autism first appears in children age three and younger. The severity of symptoms varies. Behaviors and abilities may differ from day to day. Symptoms may decrease as the child grows older. Children with autism may exhibit a combination of abnormal behaviors.
Bulimia
Bulimia nervosa is an eating disorder. People who have bulimia eat very large amounts of food (called binging) and many also use inappropriate means (vomiting, laxatives, etc) to rid their bodies of the food (called purging). Affected individuals eat compulsively, and purge to prevent gaining weight. They are overly concerned with weight and body image.
Bipolar Disorder
Bipolar disorder is a disorder characterized by extreme swings in mood, energy, and ability to function. The mood changes of bipolar disorder are more dramatic than normal ups and downs.
Conduct Disorders
Conduct disorder is a childhood behavior disorder characterized by aggressive and destructive activities that cause disruptions in the child's environments such as home and school. The prominent feature of conduct disorder is the repetitive and persistent pattern of behaviors that violate societal norms and the rights of other people.
Dementia
Dementia is the progressive loss of memory and various other mental functions, including the ability to learn, reason, and judge. This loss of mental functioning impairs the patient's social functioning, and most people with dementia are eventually unable to care for themselves.
Depression
Depression is a mental illness characterized by feelings of profound sadness and lack of interest in enjoyable activities. It may cause a wide range of symptoms, both physical and emotional. It can last for weeks, months, or years.
Drug Abuse/Dependence
Substance abuse is continued use of a substance in spite of school- or work-related or interpersonal problems, but the user has not gotten dependent on the substance. The individual who abuses a substance may experience legal problems and may have problems fulfilling responsibilities, such as caring for a child.

Substance dependence is characterized by continued use of a substance even after the user has experienced serious substance-related problems. The dependent person craves the substance, and needs more of the substance(s) to achieve the effect that a lesser amount of the substance induced in the past. The person can also experience withdrawal symptoms when the substance is not used.
Grief
Grief, which is also known as bereavement, is a term used to describe the intense and painful emotions experienced when someone or something a person cares about either dies or is lost.
Insomnia
Insomnia is a disorder in which people are unable to get enough sleep because of one or more factors. People with insomnia often have daytime symptoms related to a lack of sleep, such as daytime sleepiness, fatigue, and decreased mental clarity.
Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder
Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is an anxiety disorder in which an individual suffers from unwanted repetitive thoughts and behaviors.
Oppositional-Defiant Disorder
Oppositional defiant disorder (ODD) is a disorder found primarily in children and adolescents. It is characterized by negative, disobedient, or defiant behavior that is worse than the normal "testing" behavior most children display from time to time.
Panic Disorder
Panic disorder is a type of anxiety disorder characterized by recurrent and unpredictable bursts of terror known as panic attacks.

A panic attack is accompanied by physical symptoms that may feel similar to a heart attack or other life-threatening condition. Intense anxiety often develops between episodes of panic. As panic attacks become more frequent, people begin avoiding situations that could trigger them.
Post-Partum Depression
Postpartum depression can occur after pregnancies of all duration, from miscarriages, to full-term deliveries. Symptoms commonly start within four to six weeks after delivery. The depression can take a mild clinical course or it can range to suicidal ideations (thoughts). This type of depression can occur anytime post-delivery to one year after delivery.
Post Traumatic Stress Disorder
Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a complex anxiety disorder in which the affected person's memory, emotional responses, intellectual processes, and nervous system have all been disrupted by one or more traumatic experiences.
Seasonal Affective Disorder
Seasonal affective disorder (SAD) is a type of mood disorder that follows an annual pattern consistent with the seasons. The most common course for SAD includes an onset of depressive symptoms late in the fall, continuation of symptoms throughout winter, and remission of symptoms in the spring.
Separation Anxiety Disorder
Children experiencing separation anxiety disorder display significant distress upon separation from the parent or other primary caregiver. Separation anxiety disorder often becomes problematic for families during elementary school, although it can also occur in older or younger children. The child appears fearful because he or she thinks something horrible will happen to the child or parent while they are apart. The child's responses to separation may include crying or becoming angry with the adult in an attempt to manipulate the situation. When thwarted by the adult's appropriate boundaries, expectations, and structure (the child must attend school, for example), the child's distress may become displaced into other maladaptive or negative behaviors. The child may begin to exhibit behavioral problems at school or at home when there has been no previous history of such problems. The child may seek out a new, negative peer group in order to gain attention or avoid separation.
Schizophrenia
Schizophrenia is a chronic, severe, disabling brain disease that interferes with the way a person thinks, speaks, expresses emotions, and behaves Symptoms usually start in adolescence or early adulthood.
Social Phobia
Social phobia is defined as an anxiety disorder characterized by a strong and persistent fear of social or performance situations in which the patient might feel embarrassment or humiliation.
Tourette’s Disorder
Tourette’s disorder is an inherited neurological disorder that typically appears in childhood. The main features of TS are repeated movements and vocalizations called tics.