Question

Discuss any two psychological strategies you can use as a health psychologist for terminally ill patients.

Answer 1

The two psychological strategies i will use with terminally ill patients are

Psychodynamic therapy - As this therapy involves treatment of unconscious behaviors and provides relief from emotional problems as well as defense mechanisms which lead to conflicts . It helps both patients and peers . We can take example of a cancer patient how after the diagnosis the patient starts having anxiety and other emotional stress. Some terminally ill patients go in denial mode . This approach helps to reveal the inner conflicts and control the emotional outbursts .

Behavioral therapy - As we know death can be scary and the situation is very stressful. Patients find it very difficult to deal with it . Behavioral therapy helps the patients to develop coping mechanisms by providing information to them. This type of approach involves things like relaxation training or desensitization in order to reduce fear and anxiety .For example a terminally ill cancer patient is suffering from anxiety can use relaxation training to calm down the mind and increase focus .