Question

Respond briefly to ONE (1) of the following therapeutic interventions as it corresponds to a client with Depression:

A. Explore how depression is experienced in a client's day-to-day living.

B. Ask a client to make a list of what he/she is depressed about and process list with a therapist.

C. Encourage sharing feelings of depression in order to clarify them and gain insight as to causes.

D. Explore experiences from a client's childhood that contribute to current depressed states.

E. Encourage client to share feelings of anger regarding pain inflicted on him/her in childhood that contributes to current depressed state.

Answer 1

D. Explore experiences from a client's childhood that contribute to current depressed states

Answer: From a psychoanalytic point of view, depression is a symptom; a symptom of something else that has not been put into words, has not been expressed and is finding a way out through our body, making us depressed. That something could be years of childhood abuse and/or neglect; other traumatic experiences, including war, loss, death, rape, violence, or any kind of physical, emotional or political hardship; hurtful family or personal events; living with an abusive parent or a partner, etc.

The focus of treatment is exploration of the patient's mind and habitual thought patterns. Such therapy is termed "non-directed." It is also "insight-oriented," meaning that the goal of treatment is increased understanding of the sources of one's inner conflicts and emotional problems. The basic techniques of psychoanalytical treatment include: Therapist neutrality, Free association,Therapeutic alliance and transference,Interpretation and Working through.

In general, this approach to treatment is considered successful if the patient has shown:

• reduction in intensity or number of symptoms
• some resolution of basic emotional conflicts
• increased independence and self-esteem
• improved functioning and adaptation to life