Psychiatric Services

November 23rd, 2007

Dear Mr. KIA: Everything in my life is terrific, but for some reason I still feel down. Not just down—I’m stuck in a vicious cycle here. I can’t sleep, I can’t eat and I hate myself, so I try to keep isolated from other people. I’m getting worried. At first, it only happened from time to time, so I assumed it was just a once-in-a-blue-moon thing. But lately, I can’t even get out of my bed each morning. I’m sinking deeper and deeper into depression. I don’t know how much longer I can take this. Please help me before I go insane.—Lost

Dear L: Relax. At least you can tell what’s going on with your mind, so it may not be as bad as it sounds. If you are just having a bad day and feel a bit blue, there are thousands of solutions here: Take a rest and get away from urban life to a retreat in nature, change your habits, exercise, get yourself a hobby, find a pet or spend a minute reading a comic. Any of these things could pull you up from a dark, gloomy mood into something more fulfilling. However, if things are a bit more serious (and they sound like they might be), you should seek the help of a professional. An expert in psychology and behavior analysis might be a better person to consult in your case, so this Mr. Know-It-All is going to refer you to these knows-it-alls.

The Psychiatric Clinic (Central General Hospital, 362/114 Moo 8, Victory Monument, Bangken, 02-552-8777. Open Tue, Thu and Sun 7am-noon. www.cgh.co.th) is a part of a 300 bed private hospital. The clinic offers mental health consulting services and rehabilitation for children, teenagers and adults including fixing developmental imbalances and assessing dysfunctions. For first-time visitors, the consulting fee is around B200-300. An appointment is necessary.

The Depression Relief Clinic specializes in healing depressive symptoms. You can walk in for a free evaluation and consulting service or email depress2005@hotmail.com and get private advice from a pro. Chat directly with them through MSN using the same email address.

Psychological Services International offers counseling and therapy involving depression, anger management, anxiety, stress, relationship problems and other mental dysfunctions in French and English. Their professional staff includes psychologists, social workers, psychotherapists and counselors.