joe

joe

About joe

Joseph Wegmann, R.Ph., LCSW is a licensed clinical pharmacist and a clinical social worker with more than thirty years of experience in the field of psychopharmacology. His diverse professional background in psychopharmacology and counseling affords him a unique perspective on medication management issues. In addition to consulting with numerous psychiatric facilities, he has presented psychopharmacology seminars to thousands of clinicians in 46 states.

Treating Performance Anxiety with Beta-Blockers

Beta-blockers, which include Inderal (propranolol), Toprol (metoprolol) and Tenormin (atenolol) among others, have been used in general medicine since 1965. These drugs block beta- receptors in the heart, and by doing so, blood pressure, heart rate and cardiac output are decreased. This led to beta-blocker use in the treatment of hypertension, angina and cardiac arrhythmias. In psychiatry, beta-blockers are used in the treatment of anxiety disorders with manifestations such as palpitations, sweating and tremor. As such, performance anxiety that may [...]

2011-08-19T17:27:31+00:00
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The Benzodiazepines

These medications are used to treat anxiety, insomnia and panic attacks. They also have anticonvulsant properties, relax skeletal muscle, treat alcohol withdrawal, and sometimes treat the side effects of antipsychotics. Benzodiazepines are more similar than they are different. They differ only in their onset of action and their duration of action. […]

2019-08-26T01:57:14+00:00
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Bipolar Disorder and Nutritional Intake

When treating a bipolar disordered client, do you their take nutritional intake into account? New research presented at the 17th Annual British Association for Counseling and Psychotherapy Research Conference this past May reveals that there is a connection between diet and bipolar disorder, with sugar, caffeine and poor overall eating habits increasing the mood swings of bipolar individuals. The research also indicated that there are noteworthy differences in the eating patterns of these individuals at the onset of bipolar disorder [...]

2011-06-30T20:55:03+00:00
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Managing Suboptimum Response to Antidepressants with SAMe and L-methylfolate

The need for viable augmentation strategies to assist in the pharmacological management of treatment-resistant depression has become so dire that clinicians seem to perk up to any option nowadays – regardless of how fly-by-night, “here today gone tomorrow” it may be. This is happening, at least in part, due to the ever-growing problem of suboptimum response to traditional antidepressant therapies. […]

2011-06-30T20:48:36+00:00
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Updates on Second-Generation Antipsychotics

Antipsychotics developed after 1990 are referred to as second-generation agents because they act on different neuroreceptor sites compared to their first-generation (Thorazine, Haldol, Stelazine, Navane, Mellaril, etc.) counterparts. Specifically, the SGAs block both dopamine and serotonin receptors and are more different from each other than they are alike. SGAs have fewer movement-related side effects. They also seem to have mood stabilizing effects that the FGAs do not possess. The main reason for using these newer antipsychotics is that patients tolerate [...]

2011-06-30T13:28:58+00:00
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Schizophrenia and Medication Non-Compliance Go Hand in Hand

It’s no secret to those of us that work in the mental health arena that schizophrenics often relapse to the active, observable symptoms of schizophrenia (delusions, hallucinations, exaggeration, disorganization) due to medication non-compliance. The three primary reasons for this are as follows: In an active psychotic state, non-compliance is fueled by paranoia – which dictates that medication is some form of poison or mind control. Why take poison, or something that will manipulate the mind? Another piece of the schizophrenic’s [...]

2011-06-30T14:34:02+00:00
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Psychotropic Medication and Suicide Prevention

Antidepressants: As a pharmacological class, the antidepressants work far too slowly to be an apt choice as a suicide deterrent. The older cyclic agents can actually be fatal in overdose, particularly if combined with alcohol. This is because many of them block the actions of histamine, thereby producing marked sedation. Serotonin antidepressants, particularly the SSRIs, can increase suicidal thinking and behavior in patients under 24 years old, but they also probably decrease suicide deaths overall. Anxiolytics: Though the benzodiazepines carry [...]

2011-06-30T14:35:15+00:00
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Psychotic Disorders in Children and Adolescents

Psychotic disorders can involve an extreme impairment in the ability to distinguish reality from fantasy, behave in an emotionally appropriate manner, and communicate effectively. The National Institutes of Health (NIH) indicates that schizophrenia is rare in children: Only about one in 1,000 have this disorder. Adolescent onset generally occurs between the ages of 11 and 15. Young people who do suffer from schizophrenia have psychotic periods that can involve hallucinations, social isolation, distorted reality, anhedonia (inability to experience pleasure) and [...]

2017-01-29T15:38:44+00:00
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