Question

Hi! Below is the case study and I want to make sure I'm on the right track. I bolded the questions I'm interested in (1-5). Looking for people who are familiar with the DSM-5/abnormal psychology and able to answer all questions completely. Thank you!

Questions:

1. Diagnosis; what is the evidence for it?

2. Treatment; typical treatment used for this diagnosis AND most effective treatment. IF the person is in treatment, what should we target first in terms of symptoms? How likely are they to stay in treatment and how likely are they to recover? Are meds involved and if so, what broad “type” of meds work for this disorder,?

3. Differential diagnosis (why is it this disorder and not this disorder)

4. Does the person have more than one diagnosis, what would DSM say about the criteria for diagnosing that

5. What would the primary causal theories be?

CASE STUDY BELOW:

Claire is a 26 year old party girl who used to be ridiculously shy. Claire graduated from college and took a job at a New York fashion magazine. Claire goes to work every day, but they hold very weird hours and most people arrive around 11 a.m. and stay until 8 p.m. this works well as they all party every night until at least 3 a.m. and waking up in the morning can be quite difficult. Claire has been arrested (not charged) because of her drunken behavior several times, she has driven drunk on several occasions, she has episodes where she cannot remember what she did or where she was and she sometimes wakes up at other people’s houses in the morning with no memory of how she got there or what they were doing the night before. Claire drinks on a daily basis and also takes many different drugs on the weekends. She is never sober for more than 48 hours and is pretty sure she can’t exist without at least alcohol in her system. She is having financial problems as well as relationship problems as a result of her drug and alcohol use. Claire does not think she has a problem because all of her friends are exactly the same way. Claire also notes that her drinking helps her cope with her disabling anxiety – she is completely unable to interact with large groups of people or go to a party without the benefit of alcohol and she feels she does rely on drugs and alcohol for this purpose perhaps a bit too much, but says that in her industry if she was unable to go to the parties and social functions, she would be fired. Claire notes that her entire family has a history of alcohol abuse but she feels that she is not “like them” and is not addicted to anything. Claire does report that her immediate family is highly dysfunctional and she basically has no relationship with her parents any longer due to their negative behavior (they are alcoholics and quite abusive at times). Claire also is unable to maintain a steady relationship with anyone who is healthy – she is bisexual but has not found a person that she is able to stay with as she always ends up getting into a huge fight and leaving. Claire comes to treatment because her roommate found her naked and wasted walking around outside their building at 4 a.m. one morning. Her roommate said that Claire was talking about suicide and was completely incoherent.

Answer 1

1)The girl is suffering from anxiety and depression due to excessive intake of alcohol and drugs.She should stop the intake of alcohol and drugs as there is a chance of loosing health. There is a chance of developing hallucinations,blurring of vision,drowsiness,sedation and lethargic behavior. The girl should go to parties less. The side effects of drugs include lack of sleep and changes in biological clock. The hormonal balance will get disturbed. She should consult a psychologist and psychiatrist.

2)She might suffer from liver cirrhosis, and mental psychosis.She will feel depressed and lonely.She will develop obsessive compulsive disorder and personality disorder.She should understand the limits and the appropriate requirements of her job in New York fashion magazine. She should be aware of the limits of working for the magazine apart from money incentives.She should interact with friends who care for her.She should not interact with her good friends and stay away from bad friends.She should prohibit the use of mood elevating drugs during her fashion work. There are very few big male business tycoons who can appreciate such big advertising jobs. There is a chance of developing social stigma and trauma after interacting with small people with regular jobs in the society.

3)Mental psychosis and frequent mood changes after working in the magazine industry. There is less chance of marital committment as only few big old people can appreciate such work environments. This can be taken as a positive work environment as Claire is offered huge money to become a picture magazine model.She should know her limits and avoid the intake of drugs as it can lead to mood changes and hormonal imbalance in the body.

4)In DSM, the diseases are grouped according to the mental illness. They are all briefly mentioned in the book. She is bisexual with availability of bad female friends

5) The work environment in the magazine industry is tough. It is demanding and required a lot input to entertain people in the world .It can become a social stigma and can lead to emotional disturbances and stress. It can also lead to suicide if motivation and satisfaction levels are not decreased.The limits should be decided by Claire herself. She should good close friends to discuss the type of people in the industry and society.