Diagnosing and treating Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder in children Firnley Blouws BED (Psychology) Introduction When we think of Post-Traumatic Stress Syndrome (PTSD), we think of adults. But not everyone who develops the syndrome is an adult. Many are children, school children. Many of those children have already developed PTSD because of life experiences in the home or in their neighborhoods. Dwivedi (2000) asserts that every child and adolescent encounters stressful events at some point in their life which can have a negative impact on them both physically and emotionally.
When looking at coping with change it is not possible to ignore some of the events which change our development, life events which cause significant change are called transitions (Jeffery, J in Aldridge, S & Rigby, S 2004). If these transitions are not prepared for, they can cause emotional difficulties or even physical illness. Counselling skills can be very effective at this stage as the helper needs to work out how to make the adjustment to these changes more satisfactory for the client, to lower the emotional distress. The counsellor has to first establish what kind of transition the client may be going through; Scholssberg (1989) in Aldridge, S & Rigby, S (2004) identified 4 different kinds of transitions: Anticipated, Unanticipated, Non-event transitions and chronic hassle transitions. Unanticipated transitions are unplanned and can be projected as a crisis; this was personally experienced when my parents got divorced.
If Sasha's grandmother had remained calm while seeking out help most likely Sasha would have been afraid but not as fearful as she was in this situation. 2. The impact of trauma is pervasive, affecting the physical development of the brain and the quality of children's relationships and attachments with others. Based on pages 10–11 of Hope and Healing and the essay "Stress, Nurture, and the Young Brain" in Concepts for Care, describe the impact of trauma on each of these areas of young children's development. Trauma affects young children's
Family therapy, sometimes called family focus therapy or family systems therapy, is a type of psychological therapy that works to change the relationships within families to help them better deal with a wide range of problems. Family therapy helps family members find constructive ways to help each other. Due to this flexibility, family therapy is useful in a wide range of situations. Family therapy can be useful in childhood and adult conditions including conduct and mood disorders, eating disorders, drug abuse and psychiatric conditions as well as couples experiencing difficulties. Family therapy is useful throughout life and can be especially useful in the treatment of long term illness such as depression.
Parents and children may need help to overcome the bad feelings. Mental health professionals can educate parents about ADHD and how it impacts a family. They also will help the child and his or her parents develop new skills, attitudes, and ways of relating to each other. Downs Syndrome Down syndrome, also known as Down’s syndrome, is a genetic condition that usually causes some level of learning disability and a range of physical features. Most babies born with Down syndrome are diagnosed after birth and will be likely to have hypotonia which is reduced muscle tone leading to floppiness, eyes that slant upwards and outwards, palmar crease which is when their palm may have only one crease across it, a below average weight and length at birth.
Running head: The Medicated Child The Medicated Child Abstract In this report, I am going to place my views on a PBS television documentary called Frontlines, The Medicated Child. The documentary show the large increase in children who have the diagnosis of ADHD that are believed by many doctors to be misdiagnosed and indeed thought to have bipolar disorder. I will express my viewpoint on prescribing anti-psychotic medications and my disbelief on the parents of these children. The Medicated Child The video on the Medicated Child made me mad and quite sad that there are parents in this world that are so willing to give their children anti-psychotic medications with little or no knowledge on what they are putting in their bodies. It was stated several times that these anti-psychotic medications are used to treat adults with bipolar disorder and their side effects have never been studied in children, so these parent are using their children as what I would call a “lab rat” some sort of science experiment, unbelievable!
They may have many contributing factors which effect everyday life that require exploration during the counselling process. Different ethnic groups may be driven by ingrained thoughts and beliefs which may be introjected by their parents making some of these abuse issues acceptable within their community. For a therapist to work ethically with abuse and the issues a client may bring to therapy it is important to look into, and be aware of, all these acts of abuse and what effects they can have on a client. There are policies and procedures for cases of abuse and latest policies and procedures regarding safeguarding are intended to be in place to support vulnerable people from abuse. Using my own experiences I hope to explore these issues within this essay and in doing so highlight my awareness of how these issues can affect a client and how therapy may help during the healing process.
Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) helps people with bipolar disorder learn to change harmful or negative thought patterns and behaviors. Family-focused therapy includes family members. It helps enhance family coping strategies, such as recognizing new episodes early and helping their loved one. This therapy also improves communication and problem-solving The Dialectical Behavior Therapy Skills Workbook for Bipolar ... - Page 193
Schizophrenia is a mental illness that most often requires multiple therapies that help a person manage their mental disease. For the larger portion of individuals with schizophrenia a combination of psychotropic medication and a psychosocial therapy is most successful (Townsend, 2008). Schizophrenia has been reviewed and presented in steps for nursing to help diagnose people. The cause of the mental disease remains a puzzle to psychiatrists, but identifying the type and care needed for people is clear. Schizophrenia can be managed, but it requires the assistance of medication and possibly other therapies.
Education is important with this form of treatment so clients can recognize how different factors affect the course of the disease and what they can do to manage these factors (Steinkuller and Rheineck 342). Family therapy is also a means of treatment where family members as well as the client see a mental health provider to find solutions and ways to deal with the disorder. Family involvement provides structure and could increase adherence to treatment leading to delays or reductions in relapses (Steinkuller and Rheineck 342). Interpersonal and social rhythm therapy involves stabilizing social and circadian rhythms based on the hypotheses that unstable daily routines result in increased bipolar episodes in individuals prone to them (Steinkuller and Rheineck 349). Social rhythm therapy recognizes the need for regular sleep/wake cycles, regulation of meals, exercise, sleep and plans for keeping rhythms stable when disruptions occur.