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Psychology
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Psychopharmacology - Case Studies Psychology Essay

Essay Instructions:

Read Chapters 11 - 13 and 19 Handbook of Clinical Psychopharmacology for Therapists Review the Appendices of Handbook of Clinical Psychopharmacology for Therapists
Your responses must be 2 pages in length per case.
Entire assignment must be 6 pages plus a title and reference page.
Considering the indicated symptoms for all three cases below you are required to:

Indicate the possible etiologies in a general way and the steps you would take to diagnose, treat, and manage these cases, with consideration of pharmacological intervention

You don’t need to discuss every detail of your treatment – just write from the standpoint of a clinical psychotherapist who does not prescribe medication, but coordinates care with physicians who do.
Case Studies: Respond to all three (3):
1. Bob is a 47-year-old Native American man who comes to you with his wife of 15 years. He appears agitated and complains that he feels anxious. His wife reports that Bob has had a lot of trouble sitting still, frequently jumping up and pacing. While he has been this way throughout their marriage, it is getting increasingly worse. Bob tells you that he is a lot like his abusive father, who died of alcoholism. Bob feels that if he drank, he’d be able to relax, but swore he would never be like his father. The wife tells you that the children are frightened when Bob gets agitated as he has punched holes in walls. You notice the wife looks frightened when you ask her if she feels the children are safe in the home.
2. Steven is a 7-year-old Korean American first grade student brought to treatment by his mother. He has been disruptive in class. His teacher and the school counselor are strongly urging that Steven be put on medication for ADHD, but his mother is reluctant to do so. Steven is described as exceptionally gifted and appears bored in the classroom. His mother tells you that Steven is impatient and rageful to his younger sisters at home. She is afraid Steven is taking after his abusive father, who no longer lives in the home due to domestic violence. She tells you that their father is allowed to visit the children in the home under her supervision.
3. Melinda is an exceptionally bright, 17-year-old African American young woman, in her first year at a state college. Both parents accompany her to your office. When she came home for spring break, she started talking nonsense, saying that the college’s biology department is using a high-powered laser to alter the DNA in her brain. She has always been an “A” student and has never shown any sign of psychiatric disturbance prior to this.

Essay Sample Content Preview:

Psychopharmacology - Case Studies
Name
Institution
Due Date
Psychopharmacology - Case Studies
Case 1: Depression and anxiety
Diagnosis
The diagnosis of Bob’s condition should in tandem with outside assistance usually associated with medication prescriber. The utilization of the DSM-5 tool would be very beneficial in providing necessary guidance towards the diagnosis of this condition. The issue of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is prevalent among the Native population. In this case, the guidelines from the American Psychiatric Association are necessary for pointing to possible generalized anxiety disorder (GAD). The fact that the reports show that the father suffered similar issues is a clear revelation of the genetic component in the condition. Similar cases always require combined therapy which involves the use of SSRI medications, as well as the use of cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT). It is important to depend on the information provided by the primary prescriber. Cognitive-behavioral therapy for this case may entail psycho-education, cognitive reframing as well as group therapy. One of the recommendable ways that could measure stress that leads to anxiety involves measuring cortisol levels within the bloodstream. The combination of pharmacology as well as behavioral techniques in mediating stress is proven to be a beneficial and effective way of treating anxiety disorders (Rosnick et al., 2016).
In the case of anxiety disorder, the following may be applicable in the diagnosis of the disorder:
* A physical examination is done for the purposes of looking at the signs that the anxiety is linked to various medications or rather underlying medical conditions
* It is necessary that blood or urine tests be undertaken in the event that medical condition is anticipated
* The medical history, as well as the revealed symptoms, are scrutinized in details
* It is necessary to use psychological questionnaires for the purposes of helping determine a diagnosis
* Alternatively, the criteria listed in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5) as per the American Psychiatric Association is applicable
The treatment
The treatment of this disorder is mainly based on the various significant effects of a generalized anxiety disorder on the ability to function on a daily basis. The most common treatment for this disorder would involve medications as well as psychotherapy. However, the combination of the two proves more beneficial and at times it takes trial and error for the purposes of determining the treatment that works best for any case.
The use of psychological counseling or psychotherapy entails working with therapists towards the reduction of anxiety symptoms. For instance, the use of cognitive-behavioral therapy provides the most effective form of psychological counseling for such anxiety disorder. This method focuses on providing various specific skills for the purposes of directly managing existing worries and assist in gradual recovery towards the different activities that have long been avoided because of anxiety.
There are also several types of medications applicable in the treatment of anxiety disorder. However, the patient should take note of the a...
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