Abnormal Psychology and Therapy

1. Abnormal Psychology and Therapy Courtney, Laina, Liv

2. Schizophrenia • Appears in late adolescence or early adulthood • Delusions • Loss of personality • Confusion, agitation, social withdrawal • Psychosis, and bizarre behavior • Linked to genetics

3. Symptoms of Schizophrenia • Social withdrawal • Hostility or suspiciousness • Deterioration of personal hygiene • Flat, expressionless gaze • Inability to cry or express joy • Inappropriate laughter or crying • Depression • Oversleeping or insomnia • Odd or irrational statements • Forgetful; unable to concentrate • Extreme reaction to criticism • Strange use of words or way of speaking

4. Schizophrenia Case Study Martin is a 21 year-old business major at a large university. Over the past few weeks his family and friends have noticed increasingly bizarre behaviors. On many occasions they’ve overheard him whispering in an agitated voice, even though there is no one nearby. Lately, he has refused to answer or make calls on his cell phone, claiming that if he does it will activate a deadly chip that was implanted in his brain by evil aliens. His parents have tried to get him to go with them to a psychiatrist for an evaluation, but he refuses. He has accused them on several occasions of conspiring with the aliens to have him killed so they can remove his brain and put it inside one of their own. He has stopped attended classes altogether. He is now so far behind in his coursework that he will fail if something doesn’t change very soon. Although Martin occasionally has a few beers with his friends, he’s never been known to abuse alcohol or use drugs. He does, however, have an estranged aunt who has been in and out of psychiatric hospitals over the years due to erratic and bizarre behavior.

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6. Psychotherapy • AKA talk therapy, or counseling • Helps to create constructive ways to cope with issues within your life • Recommended when someone is dealing with a work or relationship problem, or a specific mental health concern • Work toward a goal

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8. Psychodynamic Therapy • Oldest modern therapy • Insight oriented therapy – unconscious processes as manifested in persons present behavior • examine unresolved conflicts and symptoms that arise from past dysfunctional relationships and manifest themselves in the need and desire to abuse substances • Therapy goals include clients self awareness and understanding of the pasts influence on current behavior • Believed to have evolved from Psychoanalytical theory • it is based in a highly developed and multifaceted theory of human development and interaction.

9. case study Some years ago a man in his twenties, who I will call Roger, came to me for treatment. His concern was that he was about to graduate from an MBA program, and he was conflicted over whether to seek a high stress but highly remunerated job or a lifestyle job that would somewhat pay less. We started the treatment with my trying to help him express the pros & cons of each possible choice. But, before long the underlying conflict began to be revealed. This man grew up in a family where the mother was the main breadwinner and the father worked at a poorly paid and low prestige job. This was in stark contrast to the other families he knew where the men were successful and the main breadwinners. Roger had felt ashamed of his father and, because he loved him, he felt guilty for feeling ashamed. He believed that if he made a lot of money he would be humiliating his father, a possibility he abhorred, at least consciously. Another part of the conflict resulted from his father's defensive expression of disdain for anyone who was very interested in money, as shallow and materialistic. Roger feared that if he took a high paying job his father would disapprove of him and, because he partly identified with his father's values, he might agree with his father's judgment. A related issue was that he saw the role of breadwinner as masculine, but it was his mother who was the breadwinner. He seemed to have some confusion over what it meant to be masculine. If he made a lot of money he would be like other fathers in his neighborhood. But he would also be more like his mother than his father. There were all sorts of issues reflected in Roger's concerns. There were his unconscious wish to best and to humiliate his father and his reluctance to do so. There were superego issues related to his sense of what was good or bad with regard to focusing on money. There were gender identity issues. There were issues of reality and fantasy regarding what he would do to his father if he were to make a lot of money and what this would do to his relationship to his father. All of these issues had been sub-conscious at the beginning of treatment. Over time, through our discussions, they were brought into consciousness and he was able to resolve them. He was able to test reality and realize that his father would be ok and would still love him if he were to make a lot of money. He was able to recognize that his sense of masculinity did not have to be tied to how much money he made. Roger was enabled to choose a challenging, and reasonably well remunerated position, which suited his emotional and financial needs.

10. Humanistic Therapy • Believes all people are inherently good • pays special attention to such phenomena as creativity,free will, and human potential • Focuses on the person as a whole and encourages self exploration • Helps develop a stronger sense of self and gain a sense of meaning in life • integrate the various components of their unique personalities so that each individual is more self-aware, mature, and authentic • Empathy is the most important aspect of this therapy • Two widely covered therapies -Gestalts therapy focuses on the skills and techniques that permit an individual to be more aware of their feelings. It is more focused on what they are feeling than what caused it -Client Centered Therapy provides a supportive environment in which clients can reestablish their true identity

11. Cognitive Therapy • helps patients understand the thoughts and feelings that influence behaviors • Commonly used to treat phobias, addictions, depression, and anxiety • Short termed-for specific problems • people learn how to identify and change destructive or disturbing thought patterns that have a negative influence on behavior. • The goal of cognitive behavior therapy is to teach patients that while they cannot control every aspect of the world around them, they can take control of how they interpret and deal with things in their environment • A number of types of approaches are used • Rational emotive therapy • Cognitive Therapy • Multimodal

12. Sociocultural Approach & Issues in Treatment • Group therapy • Family and couples counseling • Self-help support groups • Cultural perspectives: therapies designed toward ethnicity and gender Video: http://videostreamingservices.com/aa/25under/july-2012.php?video_id=0&cc_id=1&aspect=16x9&lang=en

13. Self-Help Support Groups • Also referred to as mutual aid/help • People within group share common problem such as disease or addictions • Used to try to help one another get through or even recover from the problem at hand • It has been estimated that there are at least 500,000 to 750,000 groups with 10 million to 15 million participants in the United States (Katz 1993) • Groups can be part of a larger organization • Meetings are normally held in a community space such as a school, church, or members house • share their stories, stresses, feelings, issues, and recoveriesThose who share a common shame and stigma can come together, without judging, to provide an “instant identity” and community (Borman 1992). • Different models for such groups exist all with the same common goal • Professional expert • Peer

14. Group Therapy • Group therapy is a type of psychotherapy that involves one or more therapists working with several people at the same time. • This type of therapy is available at various locations such as churches, hospitals, mental health clinics, and other community buildings. • Examples of group therapy include AA, Drug Addiction, and therapy at hospitals for people with terminal illnesses.

15. Family and Couples Therapy Family: • Help improve communication and resolve problems within families • Can be whole family or only parts of a family (just mom and daughter) • provided by a psychologist, clinical social worker or licensed therapist. • Normally short term • Treatment plans depend on situations • Helps deepen family connections and get through stressful times even after sessions conclude Couples: • Both emotional and behavioral approaches can be used • Mainly used to modify dysfunctional behavior, change views of the relationship, decrease avoidance and increase strengths and communication • Therapy may be sought out very late in “struggles”

16. Family Therapy Case Study http://www.palomar.edu/behavioralscience/AODS/pdf%5C%5CCaseStudy.pdf Benjamin Piper, 16, decided to go to family counseling along with outpatient treatment for substance abuse due to problems with behavioral issues at home and school. This abuse has caused conflict in his middle class family including his mother, father, and 14 year old sister. The first point of action was to soberize the boy- an agreement between he, the family, and the school for 30 days. Next, counseling aimed at improving the relationship between the parents-receiving sessions separate from the children. This therapy not only helped the son with certain substance abuse but also helped communication within the family.

17. Works Cited • "What Is Schizophrenia?" N.p., n.d. Web. 6 Mar. 2014. http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/36942.php • Psychotherapy. N.p., n.d. Web. 6 Mar. 2014. http://psychcentral.com/psychotherapy/ • Sociocultural Approaches and Issues in Treatment. N.p., n.d. Web. 6 Mar. 2014. https://www.inkling.com/read/the-science-of-psychology-laura-king-2nd/chapter-16/sociocultural-approaches-and • "What Is Group Therapy?" About.com Psychology. N.p., n.d. Web. 07 Mar. 2014. http://psychology.about.com/od/psychotherapy/f/group-therapy.htm • "Schizophrenia: Signs, Symptoms, and Causes." N.p., n.d. Web. 7 Mar. 2014. http://www.helpguide.org/mental/schizophrenia_symptom.htm