Download Psychotic Disorders and Brief Psychotic Episode and more Thesis Business Accounting in PDF only on Docsity! APSY 8722 Psychotic Disorders Department of Forensic Psychology, Walden University APSY 8722: Abnormal Behavior Psychotic Disorders Brief psychotic disorder that occurs after an obvious stressor or incident, such as the death of a loved one or natural disaster, typically has a sudden onset and symptoms dissipate quickly (Hooley et al., 2017). In the case study “Four Days of Symptoms and Rapid Recovery,” a 32-year-old man, Ronald experiences a brief psychotic episode. To diagnose a brief psychotic episode the individual must experience either delusions, hallucinations, or disorganized speech (Hooley et al., 2017). These symptoms may also coincide with catatonic behaviors or grossly disorganized behaviors (Hooley et al., 2017). The duration of symptoms must last one day, and up to one month, with full recovering and return to normal functioning (Hooley et al., 2017). Lastly, the symptoms cannot be better explained by another medical or mental health condition (Hooley et al., 2017). When diagnosing the presence of delusions understanding this term and its presentation is important. A delusion is a strongly held erroneous belief, that even when presented with contradictory evidence the individual cannot change their belief (Hooley et al., 2017). However, when diagnosing delusions it is vital to consider the culture of the individual; there are many foreign-culture specific beliefs that a western psychologist may incorrectly dismiss as deluded PSYCHOTIC DISORDERS 2 thinking (Hooley et al., 2017). Such as the belief that ingesting semen as a young boy while make one more masculine, this is a common belief among the Sambia people of Papua New Guinea (Parker, 1995). In the case study, Ronald was a successful lawyer, husband, and father of two young children (Hooley et al., 2017). Ronald found his wife in bed with his best friend one day, he was deeply shocked, angry, and became depressed (Hooley et al., 2017). Within a few days Ronald began exhibiting strange symptoms, including hearing voices, speaking of fusing with God, creating peace on Earth, and a conspiracy (Hooley et al., 2017). He also presented with negative symptoms, such as a flat affect and his speech was slow and distinctly different from his normal patterns (Hooley et al., 2017). Ronald was subsequently admitted to a hospital, and within five days his symptoms had vanished, and he was seemingly normal again (Hooley et al., 2017). Ronald experienced a brief psychotic episode due to the sudden shock of finding his wife in bed with his best friend. This betrayal triggered Ronald into disconnecting from reality for a brief time. Most likely Ronald has a genetic predisposition to psychotic disorders, and this event triggered that gene. Ronald experienced delusions (fusing with God and the conspiracy), hallucinations (voices), disorganized speech (his slow and distinct manner), along with negative symptoms (flat affect) (Hooley et al., 2017). The prognosis for brief psychotic disorder is fairly positive, as seen in the case of Ronald, most individuals return quickly back to their pre-episode normal and do not have a subsequent episode (Hooley et al., 2017). It is currently unknown what, if any, long term effects the brief psychotic episode will have on future mental health and functioning.
