Abnormal Psychology.docx

Name: Ndumiso Surname: Gumede Student N0: 1618858 Course name: Abnormal Psychology Course code: Psyc 3001 Due date: 15 March 2019 Topic: the essay will be a critical and diagnostic analysis of the case study given below. Your essay will follow the standard essay guild lines stated above and will be an academic paper. In your essay, discuss the potential diagnosis of the fictious patient given in the case study.

This academic essay aims to critically analyse and discuss the potential diagnosis for the patient given in the case study. Firstly, this essay will try to give explanation as to what constitute abnormality in psychology and provide why a specific behaviour is constituted as abnormal with regards to a scenario in the case study. It will then identify and justify the diagnosis or diagnoses that would be suggested for the patient given in the case study also including a complete differential diagnosis and rule out those diagnosis that are least likely. Diagnosis will be chosen with good description of the symptoms from the case study that meet DSM 5 criteria. This writing will then mention a short discussion of the symptoms that the patient does not meet and mention what more information will be needed to confirm the diagnosis, and a brief discussion of other possible factors given in the case study that support the choice of diagnosis for the patient. This essay will lastly discuss what factors might have contributed to the patient experiencing symptoms of this certain diagnosis and will also state or give a prognosis of the disorder and provide a brief discussion of what best course of treatment would be applied for the patient as mentioned in the case study. Psychological disorder is a mental dysfunctionality within and individual associated with distress or impairment in functioning and a response that is typically or culturally no expected. A behaviour that shows patterns of typical deviance (different and extreme), distress, dysfunctionality (interfering with the person’s ability to conduct daily activities in a constructive manner) and possibly pose danger to themselves or other people. If a character shows thoughts and emotions that differ from more like from the societies idea of proper functioning. However, it is important to note that judgement on what constitutes abnormality vary from society to society, this will further be explained later this essay. With little focus on what Sandy’s specific diagnosis is, it is event that the patient has psychological dysfunctionality paying attending to the general definition to psychological disorder defined by professors and psychologist, the patient’s behaviour shows certain features are deviant, distress, dysfunction and danger. The patient shows signs deviance behaviour, which is not culturally normal. She has been having unprotected sex with a group of strangers, one must recall, culturally women are somehow forbidden to have multiple partners, let alone having intercourse with them. The patient also shows signs of dysfunctionality as it seems to interfere with her ability to conduct daily activities in a contractive manner, she started to skipping classes, which interfered with her university work. Breakdown in the patients cognitive and emotional and behavioural functionality. The patient reported to have been to heaven and was hallucinating. She later became irritable. The patient further meets the features

of psychological disorder. The patient also poses danger to her self and others, the patient is involved in drugs and acts irresponsible to her wellbeing. All those three factors mentioned on the definition of abnormality, this is possibly why the patient is deemed abnormally not well, now that it’s been “proven” that the patient is abnormal, the possible diagnosis is to follow. The patient suffers from bipolar disorder, bipolar 1 disorder to be precise, even though currently when the patient is introduced she seems to be on the mania stage, however have abnormal history shows that she also suffered a severe unipolar stage. There for the patient suffers from bipolar as she shows symptoms of, firstly mania: the dramatic and inappropriate rise in mood. The patient has a major euphoric joy. Patients with bipolar have constant excitement, involvement and companionship. They even seek new friend new friends, they may have little awareness that their social behaviour is overwhelming and excessive. The patient showed signs of being overly active, talks rapidly and loudly, with racing incoherent thoughts. In the cognitive state of mind, they may show poor judgment and planning. The patient lost coherence and touch with reality. The patient migrated to the next stage of bipolar I after one week. She moved to a depressive stage, before she showed major signs of psychotic features such as delusion and hallucinations, as she explained to have spoken to Christ. The depression stage is relentless, it can last longer than mania, it can be months and it strikes areas of function, at an emotional, behavioural, cognitive and physical level. Patients at this stage may feel sad, dejected and may experience anhedonia: an inability to experience pleasure at all. They lose the will to do their daily activities at a behavioural level, a person may be less active and not productive, spending more time alone in a gloomy place. At a cognitive level, this is the extreme prime as it may pose danger for the person, because it is here that they consider themselves inadequate, inferior and blame themselves for misfortunes they may eventually want to commit suicide. They physically feel pain and fatigue.

The patient may be diagnosed with schizophrenia as a possible diagnosis, since persons with schizophrenia usually have unusual perception, strange thoughts, disturbed emotion and motor abnormities. They may suffer from psychosis and hallucinate at times. Note that the sandy shows many symptoms that are associated with schizophrenia, however what distinguish her from schizophrenic patients is that her condition lasted few weeks, whereas schizophrenia last about 6 months or more, then her condition migrated to the next stage which is depression. Whereas with most cases with schizophrenia, a patient would have a major depression that

keeps on worsening. The patient can possibly be considered for dysthymia diagnosis, which is the major reoccurring depression sometimes called double depression. This p[possible diagnosis is suggested solely because it is stated on the patient’s history of abnormal behaviour that she has suffered from depression during her first semester at the university and was later hospitalized and left university(Barlow, D.H & Durand, V.M: 2012).to include the few diagnosis that are least likely to be considered for this patient, anxiety disorder, as it is defined by DSM-5 craterisation as a sudden sense of agitation and nervousness, which is often focused on upcoming danger ( Rosenberg, R& Stephen, K: 2010) This is evaluated by the system that puts symptoms to criteria, judging it severity and possible diagnosis, the system called DSM5. The DSM-5 is a system sued by clinicians and researchers to classify and diagnoses cognitive/ mental disorders. DSM-5 is sued as guidelines to diagnose mental disorder, according to the system, a major depression would last about two o more weeks with at least five symptoms of depression, which are sad mood, loss of pleasure. In extreme circumstances the episode may include psychotic symptoms where the person lose touch with reality. The patient reported bizarre, having seen Christ, which are signs of hallucination. The maniac stage has a distinct period of mentally and persistent elevated, irritable that last for one week. According to DSM5 if a potential patient meets these criteria, they are to be hospitalized and treated with necessary treatment.