Patient Education

Anna Marie Grace Kastner would like to be your partner in health care. Feel free to ask your questions and share your concerns with us. We will work with you to develop a wellness program for the care and treatment you need.

We welcome you to our practice and look forward to caring for you.

Anna Marie Grace Kastner provides a full range of medical services including the following:

Alcoholism

Alcoholism is a chronic addiction disorder in which a person becomes dependent on alcohol. Individuals with this condition are unable to control how much they drink and often experience serious consequences as a result of their alcohol consumption. Some people may not be characterized as alcoholics, but can suffer from alcohol abuse, meaning that they drink excessively but are not fully dependent on alcohol. Both conditions are considered serious and require long-term treatment in order to resume a normal, fully functioning lifestyle. ...

ADHD in Children

Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a chronic condition that affects children, with symptoms often continuing into adulthood. Common symptoms of ADHD include inattentiveness, hyperactivity, and impulsive behavior. ADHD affects the behavior of children both at home and in school. According to the Federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, approximately eleven percent of children in the United States are diagnosed with ADHD. Boys are more commonly diagnosed with this condition than girls. Children with ADHD often struggle in school, have poor self-esteem and may be at an increased risk for drug and alcohol abuse as they get older. With treatment, however, most people with ADHD can lead successful and productive lives. ...

Adult ADHD

Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, commonly known as ADHD, is chronic disorder that includes symptoms of inattentiveness, hyperactivity, and impulsive behavior. ADHD is commonly diagnosed in young children, however, many people continue to suffer from this condition as adults. Adult ADHD is typically more subtle and harder to diagnose, but affects many adults that were diagnosed as children. Most adults with ADHD had ADHD as children, even if it was never diagnosed. Some people with ADHD have fewer symptoms as they get older, while others continue to have significant symptoms as adults. ...

Bipolar Disorder

Bipolar disorder, previously known as manic-depressive illness, is a complex psychiatric disorder that involves sudden and dramatic mood swings between mania and depression. An episode may last for hours, days, weeks or months and symptoms may be severe, sometimes resulting in dangerously impulsive or self-destructive behavior and sometimes leading to depression so deep it results in suicide. ...

Conduct Disorder

A conduct disorder is a mental disorder that may occur during childhood or adolescence. Children and adolescents with conduct disorders experience ongoing emotional and behavioral problems that may include difficulty following rules, defiant or impulsive behavior, criminal activity or drug abuse. Boys are more prone to conduct disorders than girls and many individuals are also afflicted with other disorders such as anxiety, attention deficit disorder, or post traumatic stress disorder. ...

Depressive Disorders

Depression is a medical condition that causes extreme feelings of sadness and emptiness. People who suffer from depression may lose interest in activities they once enjoyed and experience a constant feeling of hopelessness on a daily basis. Depression, also known as clinical or major depression, may be triggered by certain events or occur along with other illnesses. Severe depression can interfere with a person's ability to work, sleep, eat, interact with others or enjoy life. With treatment, however, depression can become a manageable condition. ...

Generalized Anxiety Disorder

Generalized anxiety disorder, or GAD, is a psychiatric problem in which anxiety is not a temporary state but a chronic condition. While it is normal for all individuals to worry about an upcoming event such as an examination or job interview, patients with GAD are in a perpetual state of anxiety, unable to relax. The disorder may become so severe that it interferes with school, work or relationships. GAD is a very common disorder, affecting millions of individuals in the United States alone. More than twice as many women as men suffer from the disorder. ...

Insomnia

Insomnia is a sleep disorder that involves difficulty falling asleep or staying asleep, sometimes both. Although most people suffer an occasional sleepless night, patients with insomnia have difficulty sleeping on a regular basis. This condition affects approximately 1 in 10 people in the United States and can lead to other troubling symptoms, such as fatigue, low energy level, and a weakened immune system. While insomnia is not normally considered a serious medical disorder, it can make life difficult, or even unmanageable. ...

Obsessive Compulsive Disorder

Obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) is a common anxiety disorder involving disturbing repetitive thoughts and rituals designed to try to alleviate such thoughts. The thoughts are obsessions; the rituals are compulsions. OCD affects millions of people and may be associated with other types of psychiatric disorders. ...

Panic Disorder

Panic disorder is an anxiety disorder in which patients suffer from sudden and unexplained attacks of extreme fear and loss of physical and psychological control. They may feel in terrible danger of overwhelming embarrassment or death. Panic attacks are sometimes precipitated by an anxiety-producing event, but often seem to occur without any provocation and are all the more terrifying for that reason. ...

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a psychiatric condition triggered by a traumatic event during which great physical harm occurs or is threatened. While almost everyone experiences trauma at one time or another, for most people the feelings of terror and helplessness subside over time. For patients with PTSD, symptoms may appear later, last longer and be much more severe than for the average person. There are many reasons an individual may develop PTSD, none of them under the individual's control. ...

Psychosis

Psychosis refers to psychiatric disturbance in which the patient loses contact with reality. This may include having delusions, hallucinations and disorganized thinking or speech. Delusions are false beliefs. Hallucinations may be visual, involving seeing things that are not there, or auditory, involving hearing sounds that are not present. Disorganized thinking and speech involve jumbled or irrational thoughts and indecipherable speech. ...

Psychotropic Medications

Psychotropic medications are drugs that alter chemical levels in the brain, affecting mood, perception and behavior. Such drugs have been in existence for hundreds of years, both from natural substances and chemical derivatives, and have been used by many cultures for medicinal and hallucinatory purposes. While many of these drugs are dangerous and illegal, during the last 50 years new medications have been researched and developed under strict scientific control to become effective, often lifesaving, prescription medications for psychiatric disorders. ...

Schizophrenia

Schizophrenia is a serious psychiatric disorder involving delusions, hallucinations, paranoia and terrifying thoughts. Research has shown that approximately one percent of the population suffer with this condition.

The symptoms of schizophrenia most often become evident in early adulthood, beginning a bit earlier in men than in women. In addition to seeing and hearing things that are not present, schizophrenic patients may believe that other people have invaded their minds or are controlling their thoughts. They may perceive themselves to be in grave danger. With such disturbing thoughts, it is no wonder that patients with this disorder behave in bizarre ways, express garbled ideas, and have difficulty living their lives in the real world. ...

Seasonal Affective Disorder

Seasonal affective disorder, also known as SAD, is a depressive disorder that occurs in accordance with the seasons. Most people with seasonal affective disorder experience symptoms in the fall and winter seasons. More rarely, patients experience this condition during the spring and summer. It is important to seek medical attention for this condition not only to maintain mood stability, but to prevent symptoms from worsening. ...

Self-Injury

Self- injury, also known as self-harm, occurs when an individual deliberately harms his or her own body. People who harm their own body, often do so by cutting or burning themselves. Self-injury is often related to trauma, and those who harm or hurt themselves are likely to have been abused in childhood. Self-injury is often a coping mechanism used by people to deal with severe emotional pain, anger, or frustration. The act of hurting themselves helps some people forget their feelings and emotional troubles and focus instead on their self-inflicted physical pain. While these people may not be suicidal, they are consciously injuring themselves and may cause permanent damage or accidental suicide. ...

Separation Anxiety Disorder

Separation anxiety disorder is a common condition found in children and young adolescents. Children who suffer from this condition experience excessive anxiety caused by actual or impending separation from their primary attachment figure. While separation anxiety is normal in very young children between the ages of eight months and two years, when this fear occurs excessively in children over the age of six years, they may have a separation anxiety disorder. ...

Premature Ejaculation

A common sexual issue among men, premature ejaculation takes place when a man reaches orgasm too quickly. The man does not have voluntary control of the timing of his ejaculation and it may occur with very little stimulation. When this happens on a regular basis, it often results in both the man and his partner feeling unfulfilled. The timing of the premature ejaculation varies from person to person as well as by circumstances. Some men experience an orgasm before intercourse even begins, while for others it may occur immediately after vaginal penetration. ...

Sleep Disorders

Sleep disorders are disturbances in sleep patterns. They involve difficulty falling asleep or staying asleep, excessive daytime tiredness, irregular breathing during sleep, or abnormal sleep behaviors. Sleep disorders may develop as a result of changes in the neurotransmitters of the brain, taking certain medications (such as corticosteroids), illness, stress, anxiety, depression, excessive caffeine or alcohol, or drug use. A sleep disorder can interfere with daily activities, and affect overall health and quality of life. When accurately diagnosed, however, most sleep disorders can be effectively treated. ...

Social Anxiety Disorder

Social anxiety disorder, also known as social phobia, is a common anxiety disorder that affects many people. People with social anxiety have excessive and unreasonable fears before and during different social situations. With a social anxiety disorder, normal, everyday interactions may cause feelings of anxiety, nervousness, self-consciousness and embarrassment. Individuals who suffer from social phobia may avoid certain social situations because of the overwhelming fear and anxiety that these situations may cause. The anxiety and emotional discomfort caused by a social anxiety disorder may interfere with daily routines, relationships, school or employment. ...

Stress Management

Now that the deep connection between physical health and emotional well-being has been established, stress management is recognized as an important component of daily life. Reducing stress has been found to improve relationships and personal satisfaction, and make students and employees more efficient. In order for successful stress management to take place, a stress assessment must be completed, designed to evaluate a patient's stress level and to highlight any areas of concern. These results are used to devise a customized treatment plan that provides patients with a variety of techniques to alleviate stress and increase comfort, energy level and productivity. ...

Substance Abuse

Substance abuse is the excessive use of a drug or substance, despite the harmful consequences that may occur. Individuals that abuse certain drugs or substances become addicted to these substances and cannot control their ability to resist the intense urges to take them. This abuse can affect a person's physical health and personal or social functioning. Substance abuse can include regular, excessive, or compulsive drinking of alcohol, and/or the habitual use of illegal or prescription drugs or other harmful substances. Severe substance abuse can destroy relationships, end careers, and lead to stroke, heart disease, brain damage, cancer, and even death. ...

Suicide

Suicide, or intentionally causing one's own death, is a serious and all too common problem in the United States. More than a tenth of all deaths nationwide are attributable to suicide and the rate of death by suicide has increased significantly during the last decade. Suicide has recently become the leading cause of death by injury, surpassing even deaths by car accidents. ...

Family Therapy

Family therapy is a form of psychotherapy that treats two or more members of the same family. Family therapists study and help to improve the dynamics in a family in which one or more members is experiencing mental distress.

Family therapy is based on the premise that, because interaction among family members is so close and intense, the beliefs, personality and experiences of each member affect the well-being of the family as a whole. The designated "patient" in a given family not only has an impact on the other members, but may be the subconsciously designated representative of the entire family's inner turmoil. ...

Tic Disorders

Tic disorders are neurological conditions that involve sudden involuntary movements or bursts of sound. These disorders normally show up in childhood and may be worsened by stress, anxiety, overheating or fatigue. The specific cause of tics is unknown, although it is believed to be neurological and may have a genetic component. Common tics include: ...

Tourette Syndrome

Tourette syndrome is a neurological disorder characterized by repeated involuntary movements and vocalizations called "tics." Although not medically dangerous, it causes serious social and psychological difficulties for those who have it because of its unusual, often disabling, symptoms. Typical onset for Tourette's is between the ages of 3 and 9, with males 3 to 4 times more likely to be affected than females. ...

Trichotillomania

Trichotillomania, also known as hair-pulling disorder, is a mental illness in which people have uncontrollable urges to pull out the hair on their scalp, eyebrows or other areas of the body. This action often results in patchy bald spots on the head and causes feelings of guilt, shame and severe emotional pain, especially when those afflicted are trying to hide their condition. People with trichotillomania most often pull hair from their scalp and may do so using their fingers, tweezers or brushes. They may enjoy playing with pulled out hair or rubbing it across the face. The hair pulling may result in patchy bald areas or missing eyelashes and eyebrows. Women are more likely than men to have trichotillomania and it usually develops during adolescence. ...