Discussion this week will focus on the diagnosis of a mood disorder. You will review the case study below. Following your review of the case study, begin to formulate your diagnostic impression. Your diagnostic impression will consist of ruling out inaccurate diagnoses and arriving at a formal diagnosis for the client.
Case Study
Edgar is a 23-year-old Hispanic male, married, with one child. Over the past two months, Edgar has experienced a depressed mood, to the extent that he has missed work multiple times. He has also had a difficult time finding energy to interact with his wife and child. At times, Edgar has had thoughts of suicide. He has not tried to act upon these thoughts, but expressed that they are troubling and cause him grief. His appetite has diminished as well, leading to a loss of about 15 lbs. that he did not intend to lose. Edgar has also had a difficult time with both initial and intermittent insomnia, struggling to fall asleep at night and then waking frequently throughout the night. Overall, the past two months have been extremely difficult. Prior to the past two months, Edgar reported feeling great. He described having more energy than “I have ever had in my life.” Edgar reported that he did not really need to sleep much and that he was able to write music, poetry, and the first five chapters of a book within about two weeks of time. Edgar says that he really misses feeling so great and that the contrast with how he feels now adds to how depressed he feels. He indicates that the only negative thing he dealt with prior to feeling depressed was inability to focus, some racing thoughts, and the fact that he at times felt like people were watching him in public.
Please respond to the following:
Identify and discuss the key symptoms experienced by the client.
Discuss at least three possible diagnoses that could apply to the client.
Provide a diagnosis for the client, including the DSM–5-TR coding.
Include a rationale for the diagnosis you arrived at for the client.
Provide a rationale for ruling out at least two additional/possible diagnoses.
Complete your discussion this week by evaluating the diagnostic impression provided by at least two of your peers. Do you agree or disagree with their diagnoses? Comment on factors that your peers included in their rationale that you might not have included.
Return to Unit 5 Discussion Instructions
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