Lona is a married 35-year-old mother of one child (age 5). She has been married for ten years. At the onset of their marriage, Lona and her husband enjoyed their budding careers and great income. They drove the cars they liked, lived in the home they liked, and bought the material goods and services they liked. For most of the marriage, Lona has been the primary breadwinner (although both make six figures).
Lona became pregnant with their first child after five years of marriage. She was a doting mother of a very healthy baby girl. Her focus shifted from her career, but she tried to the best of her ability to be a jack of all trades. She was a great mother, housewife, and professional.
Soon, however, Lona became exhausted from her pace. She did not eat as well as before. She did not sleep as well as before (largely because she attempted to do all of her work while the baby was in bed). She found herself making a tremendous to-do list each day that never seemed to get done.
Lona arranged her schedule so that she did not need a babysitter. She mothered during the day and worked long into the night to meet the needs of her household. She endured this schedule for four years almost flawlessly. However, she became irritable, sickly, and seemingly “wilted.” She continued to dote on her child, but her marriage suffered. She was too tired for intimacy and resented her husband for daring to state that he was tired. He seldom helped around the house, and their daughter was so attached to Lona that she could not be soothed by her father for long periods of time.
Lona became sullen and very tired. Her allergies returned after a ten-year hiatus. She stopped doing the things she enjoyed and began to do whatever she could to simply stay awake. She decided to quit her high-paying job to work for a lesser salary at home. She stated repeatedly that it was her husband’s turn to pick up the slack.
Lona only spoke to her sister and mother of her anger, resentment, and fatigue. She discontinued exercise due to her inability to get up in the morning early enough to go jogging. This has left her twenty pounds heavier than before.
Lona states upon meeting you that she feels she is going downhill and needs some help to figure out a solution to her problems. She is very cooperative and willing to work hard to feel better for the sake of her child. Lona has not ever been in therapy before, but several of her friends have found it beneficial and enlightening.
Lona’s aim is to keep her family intact and work on her problems to feel better.
Applied Final Case Study Project–Paper Instructions:
Submit your paper as a Word Document in the Assignment Folder. Check to make sure your paper was properly uploaded (Attached) as late or missing papers will not be accepted. Your paper should be: double spaced, 1 inch margins, 12 font Times New Roman, 5 ½ -7 pages and should address Parts I-VIII. (In-text citations and references should be written using APA Style)
Students are encouraged to use the following format throughout the paper:
I.Demographic Information ( 1-1 ½ page; paragraphs)
(Text)
II.Presenting Problem (1-1 ½ pages; paragraphs)
(Text)
III.Mental Status/Functioning ( ½ -1 page; paragraph(s))
(Text)
IV.Preliminary Diagnosis ( 1 ½ -2 pages; paragraphs)
(Text)
V.Preliminary Treatment Plan ( ¾ -1 ½ pages; paragraphs)
(Text)
VI.Homework (1/2-1 page)
(Text)
VII.Goals and Objectives for Future Psychotherapy Session (1/2-1 page; paragraph(s))
(Text)
VIII.References
(Text)
*Please proofread your paper prior to submission to avoid excessive spelling, grammar and organizational errors and loss of points. *
Part I: Demographic Information (10 points)
Refer to information in the In-take Report to make inferences and/or use your imagination to address the following in the Demographic section of your paper:
•?Name
•?Gender
•?Race/ethnicity
•?Age
•?Educational background (high school, college, professional degree)
•?Occupation and current employment status
•?Relationship status (e.g. single, married, divorced, partnered etc.)? Include name and age if appropriate.
•?Children? Include name(s) and age(s) if appropriate.
•?Social class (e.g. middle class, affluent, working class, upper middle class etc.)
•?Prior mental health history (e.g. diagnoses, psychotherapy/counseling, medication, family history of mental disorders etc.)
•?Additional relevant demographic data?
Part II: Presenting Problem(s) (15 points)
Write a summary of the concern(s) that led Lona to seek treatment in the Presenting Problem(s) section of your paper.
Summarize Lona’s concerns and her goals/objectives for therapy.
Part III: Mental Status/Functioning (5 points)
Use your imagination or make inferences from the Intake Report or other case examples to address how Lona might “present” in an in-take (initial) psychotherapy session.
Briefly describe your observations(assessment) of Lona’s appearance, activity, mood/affect, speech/language, thought process, thought content etc.
Please visit the following website: http://aitlvideo.uc.edu/aitl/MSE/MSEkm.swf if you need more clarification or ideas for this section.
Part IV: Preliminary Diagnosis (40 points)
DSM 5 requires clinicians to provide both categorical and dimensional information as part of a proper diagnosis. Categorical information refers to the name of the category (disorder) indicated by the client’s symptoms. Dimensional information is a rating of how severe a client’s symptoms are and how dysfunctional the client is across various dimensions of personality. (Comer, 2014, p. 85)
In addition to the other guidelines in question #1 below, be sure to address the following in Part IV: Preliminary Diagnosis section of your paper:
CLICK HERE TO ORDER THIS ESSAY!!!!Categorical Information
Decide which one(s) the many psychological disorders in the DSM that Lona is displaying. (Hint: Consider the most frequently diagnosed disorders and consult research related to comorbity if there is another diagnosis that you want to “rule out” or further assess.)
Dimensional Information
Assess the current severity of the client’s disorder. In other words, to what extent do Lona’s symptoms appear to impair her overall functioning? According to Comer (2014), “the framers of the DSM 5 have suggested various rating scales that may prove useful for evaluating the severity of the particular disorder(s).” (p.86). Given the current textbook does not include severity rating information, you are encouraged to use descriptors like: no-impairment, mild, moderate, severe etc. to describe her overall functioning/diagnosis.
Additional Information
Provide useful information that relates to your diagnosis or diagnoses. For instance, you might include information about psychosocial, environmental or occupational challenge or concern that Lona that might contribute to her diagnosis (categorical information) and severity of the diagnosis or diagnoses (dimensional information).
CLICK HERE TO ORDER THIS ESSAY!!!!Based on the information provided in the In-Take Report and Parts I-III, address the following in the Preliminary Diagnosis section of your paper:
1. What is your preliminary diagnosis of Lona? (Include :Categorical information, Dimensional Information and Additional information described above). What are key symptoms and other assessment information/observations that led you to your diagnosis etc.? Refer to DSM 5 resources, textbook, scholarly research etc. to provide a rationale for your diagnosis.
2. What are 2-3 areas of improvement for Lona? List each and your thoughts about how these areas can be changed to support Lona in her treatment.
3. What are Lona’s strengths as you see them? (Look for these to assist you with being a good helper for her and to assist her with meeting treatment goals). List each and your idea of how it could be used to support Lona in her treatment.
V. Preliminary Treatment Plan (15 points)
Based on your Preliminary Diagnosis (including scholarly research/theory, textbook readings etc.), discuss and describe the following information in the Preliminary Treatment Planning section of your paper.
What are 3 (potential) treatment goals for Lona? List each and discuss separately in detail. Be sure to discuss your rationale and to refer to a specific model (e.g. psychoanalytic, socio-cultural; cognitive etc.) or area of research to provide context for your treatment goals.
CLICK HERE TO ORDER THIS ESSAY!!!!VI. Homework (10 points)
Based on your Preliminary Treatment Plan, discuss the information below in the Homework section of your paper. Consult your textbook and/or a reputable professional website and/or scholarly research article for examples and ideas.
What 2 homework assignments will you give Lona to work on for her next appointment with you? How will they support Lona in her treatment?
VII. Goals and Objectives for Future Psychotherapy Session (5 points)
Discuss 2-3 issues that you will explore next (e.g., Lona’s relationship with her husband; professional goals etc.)? Be sure to explain your rationale (e.g. objective for exploring issues related to her relationship, career etc.) andhow it is related to your preliminary diagnosis and overall treatment goals
VIII. References (5 points)
APA Style required
