Depression and Anxiety - Assignment Example

Psychology Psychology Question Axis is a top level diagnosis and usually assesses the clinical condition of individuals and mostly those that are to be attended to immediately. They include clinical syndrome like schizophrenia or even dependence on substance. Axis 2 mainly concentrates on personality disorders of individuals and it has the scale to rate mental retardation. Include the problems of relating to the world like paranoid personality disorder. Axis 3 usually takes note of any general medical status of individuals. The diagnosis involves more than a single problem. Relevant in management of cases like overdose and cirrhosis Axis 4 deals mainly with the psychosocial as well as environmental problems. The focus is on the stressors that contribute to the current disorder. An example is solving support problems from family. Axis 5 guides the clinicians to know how best an individual is able to cope at the present time under the normal life conditions. The rating ranges from 1 to 100. At 1 an example would be a very serious suicidal attempt. In order to come up with diagnosis, I would have used clinical interview as this enables me to interact with client and seek information about their history and gives a chance to know how the client interacts, reasons and thinks. I would also use the medical review techniques in order to understand the client’s medical history and identify any potential links to their problems. Question 2 According to the biological approach to depression, there are low levels of the neurotransmitter Serotonin. According to this approach, when a person is depressed then it happens because they are genetically predisposed to depression. In order to combat it, there is need to carry out medications so that the levels of Serotonin are increased in the brain. According to Humanistic-Existential approach, depression arises as a result of individuals being unable to cope with situations facing them in life. Thus, the individuals are unable to self-actualize. The approach puts emphasis on holistic view of human beings and giving individuals’ choice of charting their destiny. A psychologist needs to identify the depressing issues of individuals that make them not to attain their highest points in life and then work on them. The cognitive-behavioral approach asserts that individuals who suffer from depression normally are those who have thoughts based on self-critical. Individuals believe they are unable to deliver. Thus, a psychologist needs to identify the traits of individual and assist them to change their way of thinking and perceiving the world in order to improve. The focus is on positive reinforcement as a way of dealing with depressives. The psychodynamic model asserts that depression is mainly based on the principle of loss. Usually, according to them, the cause of all depression is anchored on loss of things that are loved and the things could be persons or objects. The loss is usually real or imagined. The psychodynamic clinicians can explore the use of free association and thus through this, the depressed can talk about the lost thing that is in their mind and then the therapists and patient discusses the events that might have led to the loss. Question 3 The behavioral treatment of Systematic desensitization is the type where individuals are exposed to objects, events or places that are known to produce anxiety while they are put in some kind of relaxation so that the level of anxiety might reduce (Roth &Fonagy, 2006). An example would be treating phobia of flying in an aero plane, where the patient is put in relaxation condition such as relaxing their muscles and then exposed to different hierarchy of that fear like being given a toy plane, then being shown flying plane and then ultimately being taken to the real plane. On the other hand, cognitive behavioral therapy deals with the best way for treating depression. Usually, it is assumed that the mood of an individual relates to their way of thought. It is used to treat anxiety disorders, for instance, an individual who fears addressing a public might be given a speech and told to confront the fears by giving the speech. Thus individuals are exposed to stimulus. Question 4 Generalized anxiety disorder is known to occur in individuals when they are combated with excessive and uncontrollable worries which mainly arise because of some expectation about event occurrence. GAD can be treated by two methods, psychotherapy or medication. In psychotherapy the cognitive behavior therapy is used where individuals are taught how to behave, think react to anxiety instances. In medication, there are two types which include anti-depressants and anti-anxiety. In obsessive compulsive disorders, the distinguishing characteristic is that people have unreasonable thoughts. Individuals often are culminated with fear and thus lead to repetitive behaviors. Body dysmorphic disorder is one that an individual believes that their appearance is defective and should be covered. The distinctive characteristic is that the concern of individual is on body image. A post-traumatic stress disorder is mental health condition which occurs as a result of a terrifying event that one encounters or experiences. The distinguishing characteristic is that it happens in an individual even when they themselves are not harmed but saw the grueling event. Question 5 In conversion disorder, individuals often suffer from neurosurgical problems and this is because of the stressful events. The individual suffers from blindness or paralysis while in Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder individuals are affected mentally after a terrifying event without necessarily suffering from neurosurgical symptoms (Roth &Fonagy, 2006). An example of conversion disorder is where a person’s leg becomes paralyzed after they fall from a horse even though they have no physical harms. The treatment of the individual might need physical therapy where the individual does exercise until the symptoms go away. Question 6 According to Freud, dissociative disorders are the conditions which lead to memory breakdown or disruption of individual’s identity. According to Psychoanalytic perspective, the main cause is the psychological trauma. The treatment according to Psychoanalytic is to help individuals to with the dissociative identity disorder to uncover and learn the best way to live with the traumas which come in childhood. Somatic Symptom Disorders as defined by Freuds Psychoanalytic theory is the condition where individuals suffer from a number of physical and somatic symptoms which cannot be explained. Question 7 The Cognitive-Behavioral therapy involves treatment of the negative perceptions held by individuals which ultimately distorts the reality (Roth &Fonagy, 2006). It is a common therapy because the actions and moods of individuals are everyday happenings and changes each time making them feel inferior in each defining situation. In order to boost individual’s moods, it is applied. In this therapy, it is short term and requires 10 to 20 sessions. The therapist identify the situations in the patient’s life which results into depression then different from psychoanalysis where the diagnosis is done backwards, the patient and therapist identify the distorted perception which makes him depressed. There is journal that the patient keeps where the negative patterns are identified and then the therapist and patient work to replace them. Usually, CBT is not the first for bi-polar treatment because the individuals with bi-polar are given medication like mood stabilizer and CBT is viewed as just an additional treatment. Question 8 Major depressive disorder is condition that is defined by instances where there are low moods for individuals even in the scenarios where these individuals are in enjoyable scenarios. Individuals have low self-esteem. Persistent Depressive Disorder is known to have depressed mood for longer periods. However, major depressive disorders are so severe as compared to persistence depressive disorder. The lasting period for Major depressive disorder is shorter compared to persistence depressive disorder (Roth &Fonagy, 2006). Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder is a condition where a woman suffers from severe pains and irritations before menstruation. This condition only affects women as opposed to the other two which affects both genders. The treatments include medications and psychotherapy. The other main treatment includes Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) (Roth &Fonagy, 2006). Question 9 Major depression is different from bipolar disorder given that the main symptom for major depression is unipolar while for bipolar disorder the symptoms are for both depression and mania. In terms of treatment many people seek treatment is instances where they suffer from major depressions but there is no medical attention for bipolar disorders. Bi-polar is complicated to treat as compared to major depressions given that the symptoms are numerous. References Roth, A., &Fonagy, P. (2006). What works for whom?: a critical review of psychotherapy research. Guilford Press. Read More