Working with Young Adults with Emerging Serious Mental Illness
Young adults with emerging symptoms of psychosis need a great deal of support as they struggle to make meaning of this experience and integrate their mental illness into their identity. Clients who are able to navigate this psychological process are better able to engage in treatment relationships and have an improved prognosis.
This course offers an opportunity to learn more about the treatment of young adults who are struggling with an emerging mental illness such as bipolar disorder, schizoaffective disorder or schizophrenia. We will begin by describing the fundamentals of diagnostic assessment for clients who are first presenting with symptoms of mania or psychosis. We will also review the basics of pharmacologic treatments for these disorders. The course will then move into a discussion of the therapeutic work with clients as they navigate their illness. We will explore the advantages and disadvantages of a diagnosis, how to talk with clients about their psychotic symptoms and develop a shared vocabulary, how to navigate feelings of shame and stigma related to having a mental illness and how to work with clients to support them in engaging in treatment.
1.5 CEs available