Donnie Darko's Set of Symptoms Common for People with Schizophrenia - Movie Review Example

Donnie Darko Psychological Analysis of Patient/Source of Data The following paper is dedicated to discussing the clinical picture of the main character of the 2001 American film by Richard Kelly “Donnie Darko.” The exact age of Donnie is not stated in the movie, but he is a teenager and looks 15-16 years old. The boy lives in Middlesex, Virginia with his parents and two sisters. Donnie has behavioral problems and can be considered a troublesome child. Namely, he has a history of aggressive behavior, such as burning down a house and being put to jail. Moreover, he has a clinical history as well, which is understood from the fact that Donnie stopped taking medications, according to his elder sister. Subsequently, it is clear that the boy has a condition from which he was prescribed some pills. Presenting Problem The acquaintance with the character occurs as he wake ups away from home as a result of sleepwalking that has been bothering Donnie for some time. After that, the boy resumes taking his pills, but continues sleepwalking. On the 2nd of October Donnie meets a man in a costume of a bunny, who introduces himself as Frank. Frank calls Donnie out of the house and tells that “a storm is coming” and the world will end “in twenty-eight days, six hours, forty-two minutes, and twelve seconds.” After that, Frank often appears before Donnie and they talk. This is Frank who encourages the patient to flood the school or to burn the house of Jim Cunningham. Apart from seeing the bunny, Donnie has other symptoms. The following includes patient’s complaints about social isolation and inability to find a common language with other people, classmates, teachers, and family (tells about his plans to express himself by means of art: books and paintings.) Furthermore, Donnie shows bursts of anger and high irritability. Sometimes resorts to philosophizing and eagerly speaks out. Supposedly, enjoys when his opinion is known and he stays out of the crowd. In addition, Donnie sometimes smiles at things that are not present in the reality, laughs without an obvious reason, and sees hallucinations other than a bunny. Finally, Donnie becomes obsessed with the idea of time travelling and makes attempts to learn about the given issue. Diagnosis The condition of the patient is named by his doctor as paranoid schizophrenia, and, to my mind, the given diagnosis corresponds to the set of symptoms noticed in a boy. To start with, the most commonly, the onset of schizophrenia is in “late teens or early adult years”. ("Schizophrenia,") Moreover, according to statistics, males appear to be under the greater risk of developing this illness than females. (Messias, Chen & Eaton, 2007; Owen, 2012) Subsequently, portrayal of Donnie Darko at the time when he is first diagnosed with schizophrenia is reasonable. Although, the family history of schizophrenia is not known and no one of the first-degree relatives of the patient shows the symptoms, it is possible to assume that some of the second-degree relatives could have this illness, or its onset in Donnie’s siblings has not started yet. Environmental factors, such as exposure to viruses before birth and problems during birth should also be considered. ("Schizophrenia," 2009) As a whole, it becomes clear that there are no factors that could prevent Donnie from being diagnosed as schizophrenic. Apart from that, the patient under consideration has symptoms which serve as a main reason to argue for schizophrenia – hallucinations. According to DSM-IV-TR, patients with schizophrenia are likely to hear voices, see things, and experience a variety of hallucinations of touch, smell, and taste, even though, the most common are aural hallucinations. ("Schizophrenia,") Also, it is common for patients to experience a so-called “command hallucinations” that either softly suggest or imperiously command what to do. In case of Donnie, he sees and hears irresistible Frank, who pushes the boy to bad actions as well as announces treats of death, which are also widespread among schizophrenic patients. In contrast to compellingly realistic hallucination of a talking bunny, Donnie sees also indistinct hallucination looking like a whirl of air. Besides, patients diagnosed with schizophrenia can suffer from sleepwalking as well. Equally important, another characteristic feature of schizophrenia is the presence of delusions of any possible content. They can range from the feeling of being prosecuted to some grandiose ideas that are perceived as doubtlessly true and real by a patient. Donnie meets this condition as well – he has a delusion about the end of the world and about the possibility of time travelling. He views it as a self-evident issue as well as has no doubts that Frank’s words are real and right. As for the other symptoms, which can be considered as less demonstrative of schizophrenia in particular, but which also help to present the full clinical picture of Donnie’s illness, it is essential to mention patient’s willingness to stand out of the crowd and ease with which he expresses personal opinion, even though it is not expected or desirable by other people. In addition, although violence is not considered among the common symptoms of schizophrenia, some patients can still display it. ("Schizophrenia," 2009) Or it can be a result of Donnie’s age, for which bursts of anger and irritability can be a normal experience. Treatment Critique After the peculiarities of Donnie’s diagnosis are clarified, treatment which the patient receives can be discussed. As a whole, Donnie’s plan of treatment consists of two interventions: medications, which he has to take on a regular basis, and sessions of individual psychotherapy with his therapist. In general, the treatment plan is right since medications appear to be essential for dealing with the symptoms of schizophrenia. Although they cannot cure the illness, because its exact roots are not clear, but enable to hold down manifestations of schizophrenia. Apart from that, Donnie’s therapist also tried to resort to hypnosis, the relevance of which for treating schizophrenia is still surrounded with controversies and inconsistencies. (Young, 2013) From one side, it is sometimes used when patients showed to positive response to medications and therapy in attempt to reduce symptoms. From another one, there are no sufficient data on usefulness of hypnosis and its effects can vary from patient to patient. (Young, 2013) In case of Donnie, hypnosis did not show any positive results, if not to mention that the therapist could not properly control the flow of dialog with the patient under hypnosis. Furthermore, psychotherapy can also be beneficial for a patient in terms of helping one to stay longer on medication, learn social skills, and teach an ill person how to maintain normal life in a community. What is meant in this context is cognitive-behavioral therapy that is aimed at modifies patterns of thinking and teaching how to cope with symptoms by means of challenging irrational beliefs appearing in patients’ heads. (Duckworth & Freedman, 2012) In contrast, psychoanalytic therapy is contraindicated as it can worsen the state of a patient. ("Schizophrenia,") Its goal is not to deal with symptoms, in the first place, but to explore unconscious issues that stand behind the current mental of emotional illness. It is also directed at making patients to realize and investigate their inner world in depth. ("Psychoanalytically-oriented psychology," 2014) The treatment of schizophrenia, in its turn, should address symptoms and include discussion of behavioral problems that patients face. Consequently, it seems that treatment of Donnie showed the signs of psychoanalytic therapy instead of being focused on teaching him how to live with his illness. Conclusion To sum up, the patient Donnie Darko shows the set of symptoms that is common for people diagnosed with schizophrenia. He experiences aural and visual hallucinations and becomes obsessed with the ideas of the end of the world and time travelling. One of his hallucinations the bunny named Frank encourages Donnie to resort to violent behavior and his words are perceived as right and truthful by the patient. The treatment plan corresponds to schizophrenia, but does not help to reduce symptoms, which means that it should be corrected. Namely, the kind of psychotherapy used can be inappropriate as well as hypnosis is not effective. References Dsm-iv criteria for schizophrenia. Cold Spring Harbor Labaratory, (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.dnalc.org/view/899-DSM-IV-Criteria-for-Schizophrenia.html Duckworth, K. & Freedman, J. (2012, Jul). Cognitive behavioral therapy. National Alliance on Mental Illness, Retrieved from http://www.nami.org/Content/NavigationMenu/Inform_Yourself/About_Mental_Illness/About_Treatments_and_Supports/Cognitive_Behavioral_Therapy1.htm Messias, E., Chen, C., & Eaton, W. (2007). Epidemiology of schizophrenia: Review of findings and myths. Psychiatric Clinics of North America, 30(3), 323-338. Retrieved from http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2727721/ Owen, P. (2012). Portrayals of schizophrenia by entertainment media: A content analysis of contemporary movies. PSYCHIATRIC SERVICES, 63(7), 655-659. Retrieved from http://ps.psychiatryonline.org/doi/pdf/10.1176/appi.ps.201100371 Psychoanalytically-oriented psychology. Australian Psychological Society , (2014). Retrieved from https://groups.psychology.org.au/GroupContent.aspx?ID=621 Schizophrenia. DSM-IV-TR , (n.d.) Retrieved from http://www.brown.edu/Courses/BI_278/Other/Clerkship/Didactics/Readings/Schizophrenia.pdf Schizophrenia. National Institute of Mental Health, (2009). Retrieved from http://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/publications/schizophrenia/schizophrenia-booket-2009_34643.pdf Young, D.P. (2013). The effective use of hypnosis in schizophrenia: Structure and strategy . International Journal of Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis, 61(4), 388-400. Retrieved from http://asociatiaromanadehipnoza.ro/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/The-Effective-Use-of-Hypnosis-in-Schizophrenia.pdf Read More