What do Clinical Health Psychologists do?

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The Relationship between Medical and Mental Health

As a fledgling field, psychology was first concerned with the modifications of behaviors through a variety of approaches that included an analysis of childhood experiences and their effects on current attitudes, reconditioning and reinforcement methods as response mechanisms – even if it means to buy cheap bulk kratom products, environmental controls and appraisals of cognitive skills. Although psychologists began recognizing that physical damage to the brain, such as tumors, strokes and head injuries could alter cognitive skills as early as 1875; clinical health psychology did not truly come into its own until the 1970’s.

Psychologists had been working in the medical profession for many years, primarily in the capacity of therapists, teaching coping skills for debilitating diseases or traumatic injuries. By the 1960’s various documentations demonstrated a direct link between psychological thought processing and physiological health. It’s generally understood that good eating habits, regular exercise, abstinence from alcohol and tobacco promotes healthier bodies, but sabotaging your health through excesses generally has a psychological base.

The Establishment of Clinical Health Psychologists

In addition to the realization that good health may sometimes depend of developing new mental techniques for relieving stress, was the awareness that stress itself can cause detrimental physical conditions. Clinical health psychologists (you could check here for the best rehabs) seek to help patients get over addictive behaviors, such as over-eating, smoking and alcoholism or counsel patients with long-term illnesses, helping them retain self-esteem and gain back control over their lives.

Many clinical health psychologists work directly in the medical field, applying research results to patient care or in recommending broader health care treatments, such as cheerful, comfortable settings for heart patients or in ways of handling the pain of crippling arthritis. Some individuals with chronic pain will stop working, socializing or engaging in any time of pastime or activity. Clinical health psychologists seek to the medical profession and the public on chronic pain victim and develop treatments for patients with chronic pain that will help them manage their pain through relaxation and low impact exercise techniques and establish more normal routines to their lives.

Clinical Health Psychologists and the Media

Many clinical health psychologists work directly with the media, helping them develop programs that encourage people to quit smoking, address health issues concerning alcoholism, unsafe sex and obesity and the biological consequences of stress. Some advise the public on how to stay healthy through exercise, healthy diet and positive thinking.

Those positive thoughts do make a difference in your longevity. Recent studies have indicated that people who take an affirmative outlook on life tend to live longer than those who demonstrated negative thoughts from an early age.

Anger raises your blood pressure. Studies have also tied angry, hostile people with greater risk of heart disease and stroke. Couples or individuals who are in constant conflict develop more colds.

The Future of Clinical Health Psychologists

Clinical health psychology is one of the fasted growing careers. Our world is developing a more conscious awareness of the links between good physical and mental health. The rising costs in health care associated with unhappy life-styles has created a demand for clinical health psychologists in health clinics, hospitals, in government programs and schools and corporations. They are hired by Universities and by research teams, advancing science by studying the links between cognitive processes and biology, and by studying health within the context of cultural and social influences. Most facilities hire clinical health psychologists with a Ph.D. and licensing, although some positions can be found with a Bachelor’s or a Master’s Degree in Psychology.