Psychiatry deals with prevention, assessment, diagnosis, treatment and rehabilitation of mental illness. A psychiatrist diagnoses and treats those with mental and emotional disorders such as schizophrenia, addictions, mood and anxiety disorders, substance-abuse disorders, and sexual and adjustment disorders. After assessment, the psychiatrist can diagnose, treat and manage an illness or problem by medication or various forms of psychotherapy. A psychiatrist is qualified to order diagnostic laboratory tests and to prescribe medications, evaluate and treat psychologic and interpersonal problems, and to intervene with families who are coping with stress, crises and other problems.

Physicians in this specialty treat patients suffering from numerous diseases and illnesses, but some of the most common are Attention Deficit Hyperactive, Learning Disabilities, Co-Dependency, Attention Deficit Disorder, clinical depression, Eating Disorders, Anxiety Disorders, Phobias, Mania, Schizophrenia, Claustrophobia, Paranoia, Agoraphobia, Psychosis, Social Anxiety Disorder, Hallucination, Post-traumatic stress disorder, Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder, Panic disorder, and Panic attacks.

Once properly diagnosed, practitioners can perform numerous procedures on patients including Marital Therapy, Marital Counseling, Adolescent Counseling, Child Counseling, Stress Management, Hypnosis, Family Therapy, Shock Treatment, Relaxation Therapy, Electroconvulsive therapy, and psychiatric therapy.

To diagnose patients with possible illnesses and diseases, specialists will often perform one of many tests including Psychiatric Evaluation, Intelligence Tests, Personality Tests, ADD/ADHD Tests, Depression Tests, Stress Tests, Abuse Tests, psychiatric exam, Sexual Health Tests, and Addictions Tests.

Doctor density varies by specialty and location. Virginia has 845 practicing psychiatrists. Broken out by city, psychiatry doctor density in Abingdon is 5, in Alexandria is 50, in Annandale is 24, in Ashland is 4, in Bedford is 2, in Berryville is 1, in Blacksburg is 4, in Bluefield is 1, in Boydton is 1, in Bristol is 4, in Burke is 2, in Burkeville is 1, in Catawba is 6, in Cedar Bluff is 1, in Centreville is 3, in Chantilly is 2, in Charlottesville is 51, in Chesapeake is 12, in Chester is 1, in Chesterfield is 6, in Chincoteague is 1, in Chincoteague Island is 1, in Christiansburg is 9, in Colonial Heights is 1, in Covington is 1, in Culpeper is 3, in Danville is 13, in Emporia is 2, in Fairfax is 43, in Falls Church is 47, in Fishersville is 4, in Fort Belvoir is 5, in Fort Lee is 2, in Franklin is 4, in Fredericksburg is 18, in Front Royal is 2, in Galax is 5, in Glen Allen is 12, in Gloucester is 2, in Hampton is 38, in Harrisonburg is 8, in Herndon is 3, in Hillsville is 1, in Hopewell is 4, in Huddleston is 1, in Jonesville is 1, in Kilmarnock is 1, in Lansdowne is 3, in Lebanon is 4, in Leesburg is 12, in Lexington is 2, in Louisa is 3, in Lynchburg is 12, in Madison Heights is 2, in Manassas is 16, in Marion is 9, in Martinsville is 2, in Mathews is 1, in Mechanicsville is 14, in Nassawadox is 3, in Newport News is 18, in Norfolk is 31, in Norton is 3, in Orange is 1, in Pennington Gap is 2, in Petersburg is 15, in Portsmouth is 29, in Purcellville is 2, in Quantico is 1, in Radford is 5, in Richlands is 2, in Richmond is 103, in Roanoke is 44, in Rockville is 1, in Rocky Mount is 1, in Salem is 33, in Smithfield is 1, in South Boston is 2, in South Hill is 1, in Spotsylvania is 1, in Stafford is 4, in Staunton is 27, in Sterling is 5, in Stonega is 1, in Stuart is 1, in Suffolk is 8, in Surry is 1, in Tazewell is 1, in Upperville is 1, in Vienna is 12, in Virginia Beach is 40, in Warrenton is 4, in Warsaw is 1, in Waynesboro is 6, in White Stone is 1, in Williamsburg is 18, in Winchester is 13, in Woodbridge is 9, in Woodstock is 1, and in Wytheville is 3.

Virginia was one of the original 13 colonies, and Richmond, its capital, was also the colonial capital. Virginia achieved statehood in 1788, and its population is currently 7,567,465. Eight U.S. presidents were born in this state. Virginia is rich in colonial history. Two former president’s homes draw thousands of visitors each year: Mt. Vernon, home of George Washington, and Monticello, home of Thomas Jefferson. Also popular visiting sites are the Shenandoah National Park, the Booker T. Washington birthplace near Roanoke, and the Blue Ridge National Parkway. Famous Virginians are singer Ella Fitzgerald, tennis great Arthur Ashe, and actor George C. Scott

According to 2005 Census estimates, Virginia has a population of 7,567,465. Of this population, 1,765,029 are under the age of 18 and 860,258 are at or above the age of 65.