Hello, Please follow the instructions to the letter as this is a final paper. Peer review journals should be used as a reference.
Choose one prompt. You can write about Cormobid Diagnosis or Misdiagnosis, but not both. If you have a question, please ask me. I am uploading more instructions too.
You will choose ONE of the following prompts for your paper. (Social Anxiety Disorder and Major Depressive Disorder are my choices)
- Reflect back on the diagnoses and disorders you have learned about in this class. Choose two that are typically co-morbid OR confused with each other (a misdiagnosis).
IF you choose the co-morbid diagnosis, I want you to clearly outline why these often occur, what similarities they share, what the treatment would be for co-morbid diagnoses and why etc. Make sure to correctly identify DSM-5 criteria.
IF you choose the misdiagnosis- I want you to clearly outline why this may occur, what similarities they share, what differences they have, how you can make sure you do not make these mistakes etc. Make sure to correctly identify DSM-5 criteria.
Make sure to add in what needs to occur for something to be considered a disorder, the process of diagnosing, and relate this to your life / your future profession. Make sure to correctly identify DSM-5 criteria (all of it). (Look up online the criteria)
It must be in APA 7th edition format. Each paper will require a peer-reviewed journal article.
Examples.
Comorbidities are more than one disorder in the same person. For example, if a person is diagnosed with both social anxiety disorder (SAD) and major depressive disorder (MDD), they are said to have comorbid (meaning co-existing) anxiety and depressive disorders.
Abnormal Psychology Paper
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Abnormal Psychology Paper
The presence of one mental disorder can increase a person’s risk of developing other psychological conditions. In mental health practice, comorbidities occur when a person with a mental disorder develops one or more psychological conditions when symptoms of the original disease have not been treated (Plana-Ripoll et al., 2019). In a study conducted by Plana-Ripoll et al. (2019), the researchers found that there is an increased risk of developing all other psychological conditions in patients who have already developed an index mental disorder, especially in the first year following the onset of the original condition. The purpose of this assignment is to explore the aspect of co-morbid diagnosis between Social Anxiety Disorder (social phobia) and Major Depressive Disorder.
Not every strange symptom that a patient experiences qualifies to be a disorder. Besides, mental health professionals must follow the correct procedure when diagnosing their patients to ensure that all the available symptoms confirming the disease presence are captured. The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) defines a mental disorder as a clinically significant psychological or behavioral dysfunction in an individual with a specific pattern causing distress, disability, or risk of suffering pain, harm, or death (Stein et al., 2021; American Psychiatric Association, 2013). To effectively diagnose or confirm the presence of a mental disorder, the mental health professional must collect subjective data as narrated by the patient or guardian, observe the patient to identify problematic behavioral issues, and administer a psychological instrument such as the DSM-5 to confirm the presence of symptoms associated with a specific mental disorder.
A co-morbid diagnosis of Social Anxiety Disorder and Major Depressive Disorder occurs when the subjective data, objective data, and the DSM-5 criteria are aligned with the two conditions. According to the American Psychiatric Association (2013), in a co-morbid diagnosis of these two named disorders, social anxiety disorder normally precedes major depressive disorder. The primary reason why comorbidity of major depressive disorder normally occurs is patients with social anxiety disorder is that social anxiety disorder usually causes chronic social isolation which triggers the development of depressive symptoms. There are significant variations in the diagnostic criteria that define the presence of social anxiety disorder and major depressive disorder (American Psychiatric Association, 2013). The criteria must be clearly distinguishable to allow the mental health professional to conclude that a patient has a co-morbid diagnosis of social anxiety disorder and major depressive disorder.
A patient’s symptoms must match the DSM-5 criteria for both social anxiety disorder and major depressive disorder for a co-morbid diagnosis to be made. The specific DSM-5 criteria that must be present to confirm social anxiety disorder diagnosis include; marked anxiety or fear related to one or more social situations, fear of rejection or humiliation, displays anxiety or fear that is provoked by a situation, avoidance of specific social situations, extraordinary fear or anxiety towards a social situation, persistent fear towards a specific social situation lasting for 6 months or more, clinically significant distress due to that fear, fear or anxiety not attributed to the impacts of another mental illness, medication use, or a medical condition (American Psychiatric Association, 2013).
The specific DSM-5 that must be met to confirm the presence of major depressive disorder include; the presence of either a depressed mood or loss of pleasure or interest; the presence of at least five of the listed symptoms for a continuous period of not less than two weeks including depressed mood most of the day, marked diminished interest in activities, significant weight loss, insomnia, psychomotor agitation or retardation, fatigue feelings of worthlessness, lack of concentration, and recurrent suicidal ideation. Additional criteria that must be met include; clinically significant distress due to the symptoms, the absence of manic episodes, and the existing symptoms not attributable to the effects of another psychological disorder, substance abuse, or a medical condition (American Psychiatric Association, 2013).
When treating a co-morbid diagnosis of social anxiety disorder and major depressive disorder, the mental health professional must select therapeutic interventions that will address the symptoms of both disorders. The reason is that when symptoms of either of the disorders are not addressed, the patient will continue to suffer psychological distress which may result in other co-morbid psychological conditions (Plana-Ripoll et al., 2019). Symptoms of both social anxiety disorder and major depressive disorder are usually treated using antidepressants and psychotherapy. The first-line medications for treating these co-morbid conditions belong to a group of drugs called selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs). The recommended SSRI to administer to a patient with a co-morbid diagnosis of social anxiety disorder and major depressive disorder is sertraline or Zoloft. The drug should be administered together with cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) to speed up the recovery process (American Psychological Association, 2019; Mithawala & Thomas, 2021). The named interventions are an appropriate choice because their abilities to improve co-morbid symptoms of both social anxiety disorder and major depressive disorder have been confirmed through research.
In summary, mental health disorders usually cause almost similar clinical presentations. Therefore, the mental health professional must first understand what constitutes a mental disorder and then follow the correct procedure for diagnosis to establish whether the patient has either one or more co-morbid mental conditions. Before concluding that a patient has a co-morbid diagnosis, the mental health professional must ensure that the patient’s symptoms match the DSM-5 criteria of all the disorders being considered. Most importantly, during treatment, the mental health professional must select therapeutic interventions that will address the symptoms of the existing co-morbid conditions.
References
American Psychiatric Association. (2013). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders. 5th ed. http://repository.poltekkes-kaltim.ac.id/657/1/Diagnostic%20and%20statistical%20manual%20of%20mental%20disorders%20_%20DSM-5%20%28%20PDFDrive.com%20%29.pdf
American Psychological Association. (2019). APA clinical practice guideline for the treatment of depression across three age cohorts. https://www.apa.org/depression-guideline/guideline.pdf
Mithawala, P., & Thomas, N. (2021). Managing social anxiety disorder. U.S. Pharmacist, 46(5):23-27
Plana-Ripoll, O., Pedersen, C. B., & Holtz, Y. (2019). Exploring comorbidity within mental disorders among a Danish national population. JAMA Psychiatry, 76(3):259–270. doi:10.1001/jamapsychiatry.2018.3658
Stein, D. J., Palk, A. C., & Kendler, K. S. (2021). What is a mental disorder? An exemplar-focused approach. Psychological Medicine, 51(6), 894–901. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0033291721001185