Review the vignette of Brett located in the Topic 5 materials, and then provide a DSM diagnosis. Based on your cultural background/worldview, what is your perspective on the nature of psychotic disorders?

Briefly review the biblical narrative in Mark 5:1-20. How would you help a psychotic individual who presents to your treatment center and insists that the etiology of his disorder is spiritual in nature and not biochemical?

Review Mercer’s article and identify two or three recommendations/practices you find relevant in this source as pertaining to a clinician that considers treating Brett.

CNL-605 Topic 5 Vignettes

Robin

Robin is a 29-year-old Caucasian female who was referred to counseling from an emergency room doctor. Per the doctor, Robin was extremely distraught when she came into the ER as evidenced by her bizarre behavior and frantic attempts to receive medical help. She informed the ER doctor that she needed to undergo surgery to remove an implant that was in her abdomen. Robin further stated that her television had spoken to her and told her that the implant had been put into her body by aliens during abduction. The doctor assessed Robin for drugs and alcohol and found no evidence of intoxication or withdrawal. Robin commented to the doctor that “nothing like this has ever happened before” and that she felt “fine until 2 weeks ago,” when she started receiving messages from the television.

Becky

Becky is a 43-year-old Caucasian female who attends counseling regularly. Recently, the focus of counseling has been focused on Becky’s relationship with her boss; she has informed her counselor that her boss is madly in love with her even though he is married with several children. Becky is trying to determine what course of action to take in convincing her boss to leave his family so that they can start one of their own. Becky tells her counselor that her boss has never discussed these matters with her outright, but she knows how he feels by the way he looks at her. Additionally, Becky states that she is able to infer his love messages out of work emails that he sends to her regularly. She has been working at her current job for approximately 2 years and believes that her boss has been in love with her for about 6 months.

Brett

Brett is a 19-year-old Caucasian male who is brought to counseling by his parents, Margaret and Henry. Margaret and Henry are extremely concerned about their son and are looking for answers regarding his unusual behaviors. Brett is a college sophomore attending a local university; to save money, he lives at his parent’s house and commutes to school. During his freshman year, Brett appeared to be doing well, but over the summer he began to act very strangely. His parents report that Brett started to spend a lot of time in his rooms with the shades drawn. He refused to bathe for days at a time and stopped eating regularly. Additionally, Margo and Henry heard Brett having conversations in his room when they knew that no one else was with him. One morning, Margo observed Brett sitting at the breakfast with a “blank” expression on his face while trying to pour milk into his shoes. In all, Henry believed that these odd behaviors have been occurring or about 9 months. Margo and Henry are devout Pentecostal believers and report that they have raised Brett to attend church and to believe in God. They are worried because before the onset of Brett’s symptoms, he reported a disturbing incident. He took a World Religions class in which a student performed a “show-and-tell” Ouija board ritual for a class project in which he described Occult religions. Brett was very upset by the event. They sought help from the pastors in their church with little relief. They were referred to you by a friend. They state that mental illness does

not run in their family.