Lesson 4: Treatmentz of Mental Disorders

Treatment

• For psychological disorders is the use of a procedure or substance to reduce or eliminate psychological problems or symptoms and/or improve quality of life.

• Notice the abnormality is not specifically stated in the description of treatment. Indeed, many people seeking treatment do not have symptoms which warrant a diagnosis of DSM-V.

Psychotherapy

• an umbrella term which describes the use of psychological methods to help a person change and resolve problems in desired ways, especially when focused on daily personal interactions

• defined by the interaction or treatment between a trained professional and a client, patient, family, couple, or group. The concerns discussed are of a psychological nature, and can differ in causes, effects, triggers, and resolutions.

• Certain terms that can be used with this more or less interchangeably include  counseling and psychotherapy

Therapy

• Is a treatment based on the theory of a disorder.

• It addresses the factors the theory says cause the disorder.

Drug Therapy

Biological treatments for abnormality are mostly drug treatments.

Lithium

Reduce symptoms of mania (agitation, excitement, grandiosity)

Psychosurgery

Attempt to lesion, or destroy, minute areas of the brain thought to be involved in a patient’s symptoms.

Psychological Treatments

Many of the types of treatments that might be most appropriate for mental disorders are psychosocial therapies or treatments—treatments that target psychological factors or social factors.

Behavioral Therapies

Focus on changing specific behaviors by reinforcements and punishments contributing to a person’s maladaptive behaviors.

Removal of reinforcements

Removes the individual from the reinforcing situation or environment.

Aversion Therapy

Makes the situation or stimulus that was once reinforcing no longer reinforcing.

Relaxation Excercises

Helps the individual voluntarily control physiological manifestations of anxiety.

Distraction Techniques

Helps the individual temporarily distract from anxiety-producing situations; diverts attention from physiological manifestations of anxiety.

Flooding or Implosive Therapy

Exposes the individual to the dreaded or feared stimulus while preventing avoidant behavior.

Systematic Desensitization

Pairs the implementation of relaxation techniques with hierarchical exposure to the aversive stimulus.

Operant Conditioning

Pairs rewards with desired behaviors.

Behavioral Contracting

Provides rewards for reaching proximal goals.

Modeling and Observational learning

Models desired behaviors, so that the client can learn through observation.

Cognitive Theories

• Help clients identify and challenge negative thoughts and dysfunctional belief systems.

• Goals are to:

a) Assist clients in identifying their irrational and maladaptive thoughts.

b) Teach clients to challenge their irrational thoughts and consider alternatives.

c) Encourage clients to face fears and recognize coping ways.

Psychodynamic Therapies

Help clients recognize maladaptive coping strategies and unconscious conflicts.

Regression

• Retreating to a behavior of an earlier developmental period to prevent anxiety and satisfy current needs.

• A stressed adult throws a tantrum like a child.

Denial

• Refusing to perceive or accept reality

• A smoker denies that smoking is bad for your health

Displacement

discharging unacceptable feelings against someone or something other than the true target

Yelling at your partner after a bad day of work

Rationalization

• Inventing an acceptable motive to explain unacceptably motivated behavior.

• Saying you failed a test because the teacher hates you.

Intellectualization

• Adopting a cold, distanced perspective on a matter that  actually creates strong, unpleasant feelings.

• Talking about a loved one’s illness in medical terms only.

Projection

• Attributing one's own unacceptable motives or desires to someone else.

• Accusing someone else of being angry when you are.

Reaction Formation

• Adopting a set of attitudes and behaviors that are the opposite of one's true dispositions.

• Treating someone you dislike very nicely.

Identification

• Adopting the ideas, values, and tendencies of someone in a superior position in order to elevate self-worth.

• A child acts like a superhero to feel strong

Sublimation

• Translating wishes and needs into socially acceptable behavior.

• Taking up kickboxing to cope with anger.

Objectives of the Therapy

free clients from the grip of the past and give them a sense of agency in making changes in the present.

Free Association

the client talks about whatever comes to mind.

Resistance

the client’s ________ to certain material is viewed as an important clue.

Transference

the client’s transfer of feelings onto the therapist.

Catharsis

the expression of emotions connected to memories and conflicts.

Humanistic Therapies

Help clients discover their greatest potential through self-exploration.

Client-Centered Therapy

• The therapist communicates empathic understanding of the client’s underlying feelings and search for self.

• Uses reflection, a method where the therapist expresses an attempt to understand what the client is experiencing and trying to communicate.

Family System Therapies

• Aim to help the individual by treating the entire family system that created and is maintaining the individual’s problems.

• Problem solving and family communication

• Beliefs of adolescents and parents

• Systematic barriers to problem solving

Emotion-Focused Therapies

Focus on difficulties in managing negative emotions and controlling impulsive behaviors.

Dialetical Behavior Therapy

• Involves mindfulness exercises

• Builds skills in managing negative emotions and interpersonal relationships

Sociocultural Therapies

• Many cultures focus on the group rather than on the individual.

• Many cultures value restraint of emotions and personal concerns.

• Some cultural norms require deference to people in authority.

• Class and cultural differences can create tensions between clients and therapists.

Therapies by cause

Therapies can be categorized by the type of cause they

address:

• Physiological causes

• Psychological causes

• Social causes