Today, tens of thousands of children, men and women are suffering from a variety of mental disorders. The stress of a fast-paced lifestyle and anxiety of personal and professional matters have started resulting in people being diagnosed with a slew of psychological conditions that need prompt prognosis and effective treatment. This is where a clinical psychologist can help enormously. 

What is Clinical Psychology?

In simple words, a clinical psychologist aims to observe and experiment on persons suspected to be affected by psychological disorders in order to improve their conditions. 

As a matter of fact, clinical psychology is extremely diverse and is one of the most complicated aspects of psychology. Clinical psychology deals with a variety of emotional, mental and behavioral disorders. It is actually the perfect blend of psychological science and refers to the assessment, diagnosis, treatment and prevention of a large number of psychological conditions that afflict people. 

The clinical psychology is evolving at a rapid pace thanks to the advances in psychology science and improvement in the ultra-modern psychological treatment methods. The top clinical psychologists, such as those at Cadabam’s in Bengaluru are well-trained in a large variety of techniques and theoretical treatment methods which help them to improve the conditions of patients suffering from various psychological problems. 

Why are Clinical Psychologists important?

Clinical psychologists are important because they work directly with patients suffering from mental disorders and psychosis. A clinical psychologist may provide therapy to individuals privately or in a group setting and is responsible for the diagnosis and treatment of different kinds of mental disorders. Clinical psychologists are experts in abnormal mental behavior, such as schizophrenia, dementia, etc.

Although clinical psychologists are not authorized to prescribe medications for psychosis, they usually use therapeutic treatment methods to treat the mental disorders of patients. 

In short, a clinical psychologist is important because they help patients to define long term goals and devise a plan of action to help patients achieve their personal, professional and emotional goals. 

Which is better – Clinical or Counseling Psychology?

Although the terms clinical psychology and counseling psychology are separate, the advances in psychology techniques is blurring the lines between the two. Clinical psychology deals with the treatment of psychological problems in patients on their bedside. On the other hand, counseling psychology is concerned with advising and is useful for providing effective guidance to patients of psychological problems. 

The main difference between the two is that a counseling psychologist focuses on patients who have lesser pathological mental problems while clinical psychology focuses on the treatment of patients with identifiable mental issues and psychosis. A counseling psychologist is mainly concerned with the career and vocational assessments of the patient while a clinical psychologist with look at projective assessment training. 

As healthcare is becoming more inclined towards a holistic approach today, large numbers of clinical and counseling psychologists are working in the same environment. However, a counseling psychologist is more likely to be employed as a counselor at a higher education institute while a clinical psychologist is mostly employed at healthcare services, such as Cadabam’s in Bengaluru.