Medication Management

Medications play a vital role in treating serious mental and physical illnesses, but your prescriptions need to be reviewed regularly to make sure you’re on the safest, most appropriate medications. Medications often need to be changed over time. If you need help with medication management, Katrina Zlataric, PMHNP-BC, and the team at KZ Psychiatric Services in Barnhart, Missouri, can help. Call the office to learn more about medication management or request an appointment online today. 

What is medication management?

Medication management is a method of ensuring that any prescriptions you have and other medicines you take are beneficial to your health and do not pose an unnecessary risk.

Many people take more than one medication every day, and some take multiple medicines. These are all meant to improve your health or help control unpleasant symptoms, but every medication has the potential to cause disagreeable side effects.

There are new and better drugs and treatments coming onto the market all the time, and some of them might cause fewer side effects or pose a lower risk of reacting with other medications you might be taking.

Reviewing your medicines regularly enables Katrina to ensure you’re on the best, safest medications and receiving the right dose.

Why do I need medications for mental health conditions?

Most mental health problems respond best to a combination of medication and therapy. CBT and other forms of psychotherapy are vital to recovery from mental illness, and Katrina always uses an appropriate form of talking therapy to treat their patients.

However, medications can also be invaluable. Mental health conditions often have links to imbalances in brain chemicals or faulty signals coming from the brain’s neurotransmitters. Medications can help rebalance these chemicals, so your brain is functioning more normally.

What kinds of medications might I be taking?

You could be taking various medicines for physical illnesses, over-the-counter medications, and very often herbal and other natural remedies, too. These all have the potential to interact with one another, sometimes with adverse consequences. Added to this are the medications you might be taking for a mental health disorder, such as:

• SSRIs (selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors)
• SNRIs (selective norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors)
• Bupropion
• Tricyclic and tetracyclic antidepressants
• MAOIs (monoamine oxidase inhibitors)
• Anti-anxiety medications
• Stimulants
• Antipsychotic medications
• Atypical antipsychotics
• Mood stabilizers
• Anticonvulsant drugs

The medication management program at KZ Psychiatric Services ensures that the combination of medicines you’re taking isn’t putting you at risk.

In addition to reviewing all the medications and combinations you’re taking, and adjusting them where appropriate, Katrina also reviews how well you’re doing with your mental health medications. For instance, if your current type of antidepressant isn’t having a noticeable effect, you might be better off trying an alternative antidepressant.

To find out more about medication management, call KZ Psychiatric Services or request an appointment online today.