Final Project Assessment and Intervention: Dan Dunne from Half Nelson The diversity and scope of individuals’ experiences with addiction is infinite; addiction targets all walks of life, regardless of age, gender, socioeconomic status, etc. Addiction itself manifests in a variety of contexts in a person’s life, including inter- and intrapersonal function, employment, social, and environment, and observable changes can offer clues and insights into progression, severity, and levels of needed treatment (Wahler & Otis, 2014). To properly aid in the treatment and recovery of individuals with substance use disorders, counselors must employ a variety of effective tools and insights, to effectively align an individual’s addiction with a complete diagnostic …show more content…
Instead of teaching in suburbs, Dan chooses to live and work in an inner-city school in New York, teaching to almost exclusively minority students. Wahler and Otis (2014) described the impact on psychological stress and the development of addiction, even in educated individuals. Dan’s desire to work in a predominantly minority school, while challenging an uphill battle of oppression in pursuit of a greater ideal of social justice and equality, can in fact place him at risk, along with other areas, for substance abuse (Orlovsky & Fleck, …show more content…
The first diagnosis that Dan meets for is F14.20: Stimulant (Cocaine) Use Disorder, Severe. To meet criteria for this diagnosis, Dan must meet at least 6 diagnostic criteria outlined. Based on his current circumstances, Dan meets the following: taking larger amounts of the drug, unsuccessful attempts to control use, cravings, impacts on family and employment roles, tolerance, and withdrawal (APA, 2013). Dan has tried to cut back, including an attempt at rehab, he comes into work either high or hungover, and was caught using crack cocaine by a student, he loses his job and has had negative run-ins with co-workers and significant others due to cocaine use, and has gone into debt because of his use (Orlovsky & Fleck, 2006). There is no question he meets the severe level of this
Thus, based on the DSM-5’s diagnostic criteria for substance use disorder, Nic Sheff would be diagnosed with severe substance use disorder. Nic consistently used large amounts of heroin and meth, sometimes to the point where he would forget periods of time. For example, when Nic’s tolerance was low after a break from crystal meth, he injected the drug and, “...plunged immediately into a period of about a week where, to this day, [he had] no idea what [he] did.” (19). This fits the first criteria of the DSM-5’s diagnostic criteria for Substance Abuse Disorder, “the stimulant is often taken in larger amounts or over a longer period than was
On April 24th, 2017, I interviewed Marco Sauri from Consejo Counseling and Referral Services. Marco is a supervisor of the substance use disorder (SUD) program at Consejo. Consejo has provided SUD services for over 37 years. Consejo’s SUD program mainly works with low-income, monolingual, often undocumented Latino adults and Youth. Marco has been a supervisor for the SUD department at Consejo since 2010.
In the excerpt “Rat Park” from Opening Skinner’s Box by Laruen Slater, demonstrates how addictions are a choice by conducting an experiment involving rats and drug addictions. Addictions are choices made by an individual. An addiction is a condition that results when an individual ingests a substance (e.g., alcohol, cocaine, nicotine) or engages in an activity (e.g., gambling, sex, shopping, eating) that can be pleasurable, but the continued use/act of which becomes compulsive and interferes with ordinary life responsibilities, such as work, relationships, or health. Addicts may not be aware that their behavior is out of control and causing problems for themselves and others. The outcome of this experiment explains how related rats are to human beings.
The intersection of racialization and disability can be examined through a different cultural lens, besides teacher-student cultural miscommunication, that includes influences of poverty and society. Nelson Beats the Odds is a personal reflection of Sidney’s experiences as a black disabled student in special education. The tiny town of Tappahannock, Virginia, where Sidney went to school and where the context of Nelson’s story takes place, has a demographic of 48.82% African American and a poverty level 31.6% (U.S. Census Bureau, 2015). This means about half of population are black and about a third of the residents live in poverty in Tappahannock. Poverty among African Americans is an important risk factor that contributes to their diagnosis of disabilities like ADHD (Basch, 2011).
This type of deceitfulness makes Tony fit the criteria for A2. Next, for criteria A3, Tony has had issues with impulsivity and failure to plan ahead (DSM-5, 2013). During his admission in the psychiatric day program he made complaints about impulses to stab other residences. For criteria A4, Tony has been known to be irritable as well as aggressive when considering his crime record. For criteria A5 he has had reckless disregard for the safety of his self (DSM-5).
Data: In today’s session, group members learned the meaning and importance of resilience and change in addiction recovery. Group members learned the steps to more resilient themselves and discussed ways that can cultivate resilience and make change in recovery. Client was on time and actively participated in the group discussion. Client reported alcohol as his drug of choice with the last use date of Jan, 2016. Client shared “Life is good.
When viewing a client through the lens of an addictions counselor it’s important to utilize Prochaska & DiClemente’s Transtheoretical Model, or the stages of change to gauge how much the client is invested into his/her treatment. The stages are precontemplation (Not Ready), contemplation (Getting Ready), preparation (Ready), action, maintenance, and relapse. When using this model as a measure of Mr. L’s readiness for treatment we can place him in the precontemplation stage because of the following. Mr. L makes it clear that he does not fully accept the abstinence model of drug treatment. He verbalizes viewing marijuana smoking as comparable to cigarette smoking and views the utilization and selling of drugs as a business.
My service learning experience was an awakening experience. I have always been drawn to help those with substance abuse because of judgmental treatment I have observed over the years. I understand that substance abuse is a health problem and addictions can be difficult to overcome; what I didn’t know before was how prevalent it was in our community, as well as in my generation. When we think about those who are alcoholics or drug addicts, we think of older adults and those in their late teens to early twenties. We don’t think of CEOs of corporations, bankers, physicians, lawyers, mothers, or other prominent members of our community.
Addiction comes in many forms and effects the person, and the people around them in many ways. Unfortunately, we find addiction in our own homes, in homes across the United States, and the world. Drug addiction and alcohol are addictions that most people are familiar with, but there many addictions that the family suffer from. To understand what the family goes through when there is an addiction, we must understand what addiction means, what the cost of the addiction ultimately does to the family, the financial stresses, what treatment looks like for the addict and the family, and what happens to the children. Addiction is a disease that is compulsive and difficult to control which could result in harmful consequences.
According to the Diagnostics and Statistics Manual Volume V, addiction
Kathleen Brady is a professor and director of psychiatry at the Medical School of the University of South Carolina. She is considered an expert on addiction and co-occurring disorders. During An Interview with Kathleen Brady there is a summary of what is addiction, myths about addiction, co-occurring disorders, the role of dopamine and relapse. As a substance abuse counselor in training this video gives a general synopsis of my education on substance use, abuse, and dependence. The three main concepts discussed that I found interesting were the role of emotional trauma and stress on the addiction process, dopamine, and the common myths of
In the addictions field, there are several forms of assessments that could potentially be used. For this particular assignment, I have chosen the CAGE Questionnaire, the AUDIT, and the Beck Depression Inventory, also referred to as the BDI. Two of the particular assessments offer insight into an individual’s alcohol addiction. Whereas, the third is used analyze intensity, severity, and depth of the client’s depression.
Therapeutic intervention approach Motivational Enhancement Therapy (MET): William R. Miller: In the field of substance abuse problem, a man named Miller who was a professor of Psychology and Psychiatry and affiliated with the centre on alcoholism, substance abuse and addictions (CASAA) at the University of New Mexico found a way to see the addicts mind set. He believed that due to confrontation the denial nature of addicts persist and due to which there seems to be no solution to their addiction habit. Further, with Stephen Rollnick he founded the motivation interviewing or Motivational Enhancement Therapy. Miller has changed the way addiction has been tried to seen by clinicians. Earlier, clinicians believed that they need to counsel an addict
The article “Confessions of a Drug-Addicted High School Teacher” by Jason Smith recounts the weekly experiences of an esteemed teacher in a conservative pocket in North California. Smith, while managing his student and superior’s complications is slowly deteriorating behind his own drug addiction issues. The main strategy used by Smith could be considered the credibility appeal; he attempts to reach his purpose by showing himself as trustworthy. Smith’s use of this rhetorical device in his writing effectively engages the reader interest and urges readers to consider how the teaching job is much more than just teaching, while his use of specific examples shows his familiarity of the subject and thus his ability to present a compelling argument.
Drug addiction is a perennial, global scourge. To many, it is the direct result of the social inequalities plaguing the world, forcing many to seek “refuge” in a corner of the mind. Drugs help enhance the feeling of detachment from reality, allowing the user to escape from reality. Whether this is true or not, or whatever the real reason behind one’s drug addiction is, one fact remains: the drug addict is a victim. This leaves it to those around him to help him out of his predicament.