Measurement-based care
In a region built on research, it makes sense to treat mental health with data. At each visit, your provider repeats validated scales like the PHQ-9 and GAD-7 and compares them with earlier scores. Changes in dose or medicine are based on those trends plus your experience, not guesswork.
Shared decisions
Your provider explains how a medicine works, what the research shows, common and serious side effects, and reasonable alternatives. You decide together. Many Triangle patients read the literature, and your provider is glad to discuss it.
Conditions we treat
Depression, anxiety and panic, OCD, ADHD, bipolar disorder, post-traumatic stress, PMDD, and insomnia linked to mental health, for adults and teens 15 and older.
Researchers and clinicians as patients
Physicians, nurses, pharmacists, and scientists sometimes find it hard to be patients. Your provider will respect your expertise while keeping the focus on your care, and your treatment stays confidential.
Clinical trials and interactions
If you join a drug study, tell your provider. Investigational medicines can interact with psychiatric treatment, and some trials restrict other medicines.
Monitoring
Lithium requires scheduled blood levels plus kidney and thyroid tests. Valproate needs periodic liver tests and blood counts. Several antipsychotics need weight, glucose, and lipid monitoring. Stimulants call for blood pressure and heart rate checks.
Controlled prescriptions
ADHD stimulants are Schedule II, filled one prescription at a time after your provider checks North Carolina's Controlled Substances Reporting System.
Travel and conferences
Many Triangle professionals fly out of RDU often. Keep medicine in carry-on luggage with extra for delays, and ask your provider for a plan when crossing time zones.
Summer heat
Triangle summers are hot and humid. Dehydration raises lithium levels and worsens some side effects. Drink water, especially on runs along the American Tobacco Trail or at the greenways.
Side effect trade-offs
Every medicine has trade-offs. Sexual side effects, weight change, emotional blunting, and sleep effects matter, and many patients do not mention them unless asked. Your provider will ask directly, because many of these can be addressed by adjusting the dose, the timing, or the medicine.
Maintenance and relapse prevention
After remission, most guidelines recommend continuing an antidepressant for six to twelve months, and longer after repeated episodes. Your provider will discuss the evidence and your history before deciding when a taper makes sense.
Older adults
For patients over 65, your provider pays close attention to medicines that raise fall risk, cloud cognition, or interact with cardiac drugs, drawing on established geriatric prescribing guidance.
Generic and brand formulations
Most psychiatric medicines are available as generics. Occasionally a patient notices a difference after a pharmacy switches manufacturers, particularly with extended-release forms. If you notice a change after a refill looks different, tell your provider.
Pharmacist collaboration
Triangle pharmacies are often staffed by highly trained clinical pharmacists. With your permission, your provider can coordinate with them on interactions and formulation questions.
Adjusting and stopping
If a medicine helps partially, options include adjusting the dose, switching, or augmenting. After several unsuccessful trials, GeneSight testing may add information. Discontinuation should follow a planned taper.
Teens and pregnancy
For patients 15 to 17, a parent or guardian takes part in decisions. If you are planning a pregnancy, pregnant, or nursing, raise it early so choices fit.
Contact us sooner for...
...new thoughts of self-harm, a burst of energy with little sleep, a rash, fainting, or side effects that disrupt your life. In a crisis, call or text 988 or call 911.
Teens and families
For patients 15 to 17, a parent or guardian participates in medication decisions, and your provider helps the teen learn to report effects and side effects accurately.
Getting started
New patients begin with a psychiatric evaluation. Transferring care? Bring your medicine list. Visit 2530 Meridian Pkwy in Durham or 9121 Anson Way in Raleigh. Become a patient without a referral.
Why Choose Triangle Psychiatry and Mental Health?
- Board-certified psychiatric providers serving Durham and the Triangle area
- Research-backed treatment protocols
- Full documentation for all evaluations
- Coordinated care with your other providers across the region