Discussion t response to a students post on Obsessive Compulsive Disorder

I have a online discussion assignment which I already did my part but also need to answer to a another students response. It just a abnormal psychology case study on Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. Basically to read about the case study about 14 pages (uploaded in files) and respond to a classmates discussion post in detail and contributing to the ideas that the student pointed out and providing some insights you found in the case. It should be very clear and evident that you read the case and are competent in the symptoms of the disorder discussed. Response should be about 400 words.

STUDENTS POST IS BELOW TO RESPOND TO!


For my case study response I chose chapter 8 on Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. As a therapist I would have proceeded with treatment differently from those in the text. I would have first addressed what I believe to be the root of Karen’s problem, her identification as a ritualized Catholic. By no means would I discourage a personal sense of healthy spirituality but Karen’s belief system was not conducive to her health. For starters, Karen had been programed since birth to emulate her parents strict disciplinary idea of a God pleasing life style. This entailed rituals and beliefs that had encouraged insurmountable fears of punitive judgments that kept her powerless her entire life. She was essentially raised on a foundation that would fail to support her. Living in fear of a punishing God who monitored sinful thoughts that were out of her control would clearly be grounds for mental illness. This alone could drive a person mad and lead to a comorbidity of disorders. From the onset, Karen was conditioned to esteem an external sense of authority that robbed her from any sense of empowerment. She was never encouraged to believe and trust in herself but to believe in a God that would condemn her eternally if she failed to observe patterns of thought and behavior that kept her in bondage. I took a special note that her biological father was not mentioned characteristically besides being devout. This results in speculation that her father, as well as God, was unavailable in a personal and supportive way. The church dogma ascended what would be a more rational design of living and personal development in her household. Karen shared that her most positive recollection of interaction with her mother centered around prescribed church functions. She seems to have always lacked inner personal relationships that would help her to develop a sense of identity. Her husband in fact appears to be nothing more than a male chauvinist who afforded her with four kids by the age 25 and in no way participates to raise them. She has no warm and loving bonds that have ever established trust or given her a pleasurable sense of belonging. Life has been structured in vain around a religious conception of servitude. I find it very negative and condemning and I see no evidence of it producing qualitative fruit in her emotional or mental frame.

I agree with the therapists conceptualization of developing Karen’s interpersonal skills that would give her more control over her environment. I disagree, however, about encouraging her to find another church that supported her fragmented beliefs. The reason Karen observes number rituals is to protect her kids because she genuinely disbeliefs that the God she serves will. There is no logic in her practice as a Catholic. Karen has never felt safe and protected by God and doesn’t believe her kids are either. Why contend to church services out of fear? The concept of honoring something that instills such an extreme sense of fear and irrationality will just continue the mental illness in various forms of manifestation. Karen can’t regain a sense of control in her environment if she keeps giving her power over to God. She needs first to be helped with an honest assessment of her beliefs and their direct influence on her life. Karen is a case study of religious dogma facilitating direct mental illness on it’s practitioners. Karen will never recover if this core of her belief system is not addressed.

"Get 15% discount on your first 3 orders with us"
Use the following coupon
FIRST15

Order Now