Week 10 - Final Project: Psychopathology and Treatment - Essay Example

Case While  teaching  her  one  day,  Theresa  suddenly  begins having  difficulty  breathing.  Her heart starts pounding wildly, and she feels weak and dizzy.  She feels as if she’s having a heart next attack).
Diagnosis: Panic Disorder
Symptoms of Panic Disorder:

The symptoms of Panic Disorder include increased heart beat as well as heart rate. The patients with Panic Disorders also suffers from the symptoms of sweating, sensations of shortness of breath, feeling dizzy and the most common symptom of Panic Disorder is that the patient has fear of dying.
Treatment of Panic Disorder:
The treatment of Panic disorder includes the most effective therapy for panic disorder i.e. exposure therapy. Exposure therapy is the most commonly therapy for panic disorder in which the sufferer is gradually exposed to anxiety-inducing or sensations in a perfectly safe and controlled environment. This technique gives panic disorder victims a new possibility of identifying the exact causes of their disease and learning new methods of coping with their symptoms in a healthier way.
Case 2:
If you interacted with Scott briefly, you might think that he is normal. However, once he told you about the governments plot against him and how he was going to be rescued by some alien friends, you would start to suspect that he is disordered. 
Diagnosis: Paranoid Schizophrenia Disorder
Symptoms of Paranoid Schizophrenia Disorder:
The symptoms of Paranoid Schizophrenia include an auditory hallucination that means the patient suffering from Paranoid Schizophrenia perceives sounds without auditory stimulus. The other symptoms are anxiety, anger, emotional distance and delusions. The word delusion means that the patient feels that a co-worker or a friend wants to poison him.
Treatment for Paranoid Schizophrenia disorder:
The primary treatment of schizophrenia is anti-psychotic medications which can reduce the hallucinations and disordered thinking in about 8-12 days. Other therapies include psychotherapy which is used to address the emotional and social issues that result from paranoid schizophrenia and group therapy can be very helpful as it creates opportunities for socialization for individuals with paranoid schizophrenia.
Case 3:
Matthew, although a good-looking guy, is so preoccupied with what he thinks is his large, unsightly nose that he is unable to realistically evaluate his own looks and often talks with his hands in front of his face. He will likely have plastic surgery some day.
Diagnosis: Body Dysmorphic Disorder (BDD)
Symptoms of Body Dysmorphic Disorder (BDD):
The symptoms of Body Dysmorphic Disorder include a strong belief that the person has as abnormality that makes him ugly and the patient having body dysmorphic disorder has a frequent examination of himself in mirror. The patient belief that others take special notice of his appearance in a negative way and in way the patient take frequent cosmetic procedures and he compares his appearance with that of others.
Treatment of Body Dysmorphic Disorder (BDD):
There are two types of treatment for Body Dysmorphic Disorder (BDD):
Medications: antidepressants or serotonin re-uptake inhibitors or SSRIs are given for the treatment of BDD that decrease the obsessive and compulsive behaviors.
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy:
Several steps are included in the cognitive behavioral therapy that is as under:
The therapist asks the patient to enter social situations without covering up his “defect”
The therapist helps the patient stop during the compulsive behaviors to check that defect or cover it up. This may include removing mirrors, covering skin areas that the patient picks
The therapist helps the patient change their false beliefs about their appearance.
Case 4:
Sarah has an unrealistic fear of shopping in crowded stores and walking through crowded streets. She has begun to spend more and more time home alone in order to avoid the panicky feeling she gets when she goes out in public.
Diagnosis:  Agoraphobia
Symptoms of Agoraphobia Disorder:
The symptoms of Agoraphobia are lightheadedness, trouble breathing. The patients of Agoraphobia also feel dizziness, rapid heart rate. The most symptom of the Agoraphobia disorder is nausea and upset stomach, diarrhea and chest pain. Some patients with Agoraphobia feel trouble swallowing and excessive sweating.
Treatment for Agoraphobia Disorder:
The treatment of agoraphobia is similar to panic disorder treatment and the treatment is done through psychotherapy or medication.
Psychotherapy treatment:
There are two types of psychotherapy used in the treatment of agoraphobia.
Existential therapy: this therapy focuses on the present and on the future. The therapist helps the client to see that they are free to make choices and recognize positive possibilities for their future.
Cognitive-behavioral therapy: this therapy helps the patient to eliminate thought patterns contributing to the patients symptoms while aiming to change his or her behavior.
Medications: Anti-anxiety medications are used for the treatment of Agoraphobia disorder and these medications include Ativan, Alzapam and Paxipam.
Case 5:
Although Katrina was not personally injured in the earthquake, the experience was a terrifying one and her house was badly damaged. She has frequent nightmares about earthquakes, and even when awake she sometimes gets flashes as if shes reliving the experience. The slightest noise or movement around her causes her heart to pound rapidly. 
Diagnosis: Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
Symptoms of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD):
There are three most common symptoms of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and they are re-experiencing the traumatic event, avoiding reminders of the trauma and I increased anxiety and emotional arousal. The specific symptoms of PTSD include
difficulty falling or staying asleep, irritability or outbursts of anger and difficulty concentrating.
Treatment of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD):
There are three types of treatments of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder:
Trauma-focused cognitive behavioral therapy: This therapy involves upsetting thoughts about the traumatic event-particularly thoughts that are distorted and irrational and replacing them with more balanced picture
Family therapy: family therapy can help the loved ones understand what the patient is going through and it can help everyone in the family communicate better and work through relationship problems caused by PTSD symptoms.
Medication: medication is prescribed to the patients to relieve the secondary symptoms of depression or anxiety and antidepressants such as Prozac and Zoloft are the medications that are commonly used for PTSD.
REFERENCES
“Panic Disorder”, 2009. The Symptoms of Panic Disorder. Retrieved from:
http://anxietytreatmenthub.com/types-of-anxiety-disorders/panic-disorder/panic-disorder-symptoms/
“Paranoid Schizophrenia”, 2010. The Symptoms of Paranoid Schizophrenia. Retrieved from:
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/paranoid-schizophrenia/ds00862/dsection=symptoms
“Paranoid Schizophrenia”, 2008. Paranoid Schizophrenia. Retrieved from:
http://www.waldenbehavioralcare.com/paranoid_schizophrenia.asp
“Body Dysmorphic Disorder”, 2010. The Symptoms of Body Dysmorphic Disorder. Retrieved from:
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/body-dysmorphic-disorder/ds00559/dsection=symptoms
“Body Dysmorphic Disorder (BDD)”, 2009. The Symptoms of Body Dysmorphic Disorder (BDD). Retrieved from:
http://www.medicinenet.com/body_dysmorphic_disorder/article.htm
“Agoraphobia Disorder”, 2011. Agoraphobia without history of panic disorder. Retrieved from:
http://www.allaboutcounseling.com/library/agoraphobia-without-history-of-panic-disorder/
“Post-traumatic Stress Disorder”, 2012. Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) Symptoms, Treatment and Self-help. Retrieved from:
http://www.helpguide.org/mental/post_traumatic_stress_disorder_symptoms_treatment.htm Read More