FINAL EXAMINATION: BABY STEPS

Final Examination: Baby Steps Jacinda Ash Utah Valley University

FINAL EXAMINATION: BABY STEPS

Abstract This paper is a review of how I would define abnormal psychology and mental disorders from what I have been taught in this course. I will list some of the myths that I believed before I took this course, and will address the disorders that I still do not understand. Next I will apply the knowledge that I have gained in the course to see which of the three factors (behavior, cognition, emotion) have the biggest role in dissociative identity disorder. Lastly, I will compare the stressful items that Kearney and Trull listed in the text to my own life and how baby steps is the method to manage stress.

FINAL EXAMINATION: BABY STEPS

Introduction I will review what I think abnormal psychology and mental disorders mean to me after taking this course. I will also list some of the myths that I believed before I took this class and the disorders that I still do not understand. I will then apply the things that I have learned to a disorder and list which factor (cognition, emotion, behavior) plays a key role in that disorder and why. Lastly I will review some of the stressful things Kearney and Trull (2012) found are most stressful for college students, how those items compare to my life, and how baby steps is the best way for me to manage stress. Methods I evaluated the questions that were asked and gathered my thoughts that I had from my notes, the book, and other papers that were written for this course to find answers to the five questions. Results I found that the way I would define Abnormal Psychology and Mental Disorders are very similar to how Kearney and Trull (2012) define them. Mental disorders are thinking patterns created by positive or negative factors that cause great stress which incapacitates functionality in the environment. Abnormal psychology is the study of mental disorders. The positive and negative factors are usually cognitions, behaviors, and emotions which are typically present in most mental disorders. Yet in some disorders such as anti-social personality disorder, these positive and negative factors are not realized. However, most of the other mental disorders that

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were studied in this course had abnormal cognitions, emotions, and behaviors that made them either less or non-functional in society. As we studied the variety of mental disorders I had a belief that people who suffered from a mental illness brought it upon themselves due to their poor choices in life. I had no idea that mental illnesses were similar to physical illnesses. So whenever someone would say that they were diagnosed with bipolar disorder or had an anxiety disorder I would think in my head, Well if you make better choices than you wouldnt have those problems. Fortunately, I have learned that is not true and now when I talk to people who do suffer from a mental illness I am more sympathetic and understanding. While there is not one specific disorder that I dont understand I would like to learn more about which disorders are curable and which require constant and permanent care. For example, dissociate identity disorder have their emotions segregated by personalities because they dont know how to express them fluidly. With some counseling will that change? Also with the gender identity disorder, we all have feminine or masculine qualities that are intermixed but in the end you are who you are. Even after the speaker came in to talk about why he was switching his gender I still could not understand what got him there. It doesnt make sense to me why one would want to go through a surgery to become something that they are not and what type of thinking patterns would get them to that point in their life. In dissociative identity disorder, emotion has the most prevalent role because that is what the individual is trying to express but cannot do it fluidly. Sometimes the person does not feel adequate enough to handle the situation or the stress that comes with some emotion so they dissociate themselves as a way of protection. They then create a character to display an emotion

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that the host personality cannot handle themselves. Kearney and Trull (2012) also shared this opinion by stating, Some researchers question the existence of multiple personalities and see only differences in representations of different emotional states (p. 158). Humphreys (2005) wrote an article about a therapy session he did for a year with a girl Kristen who was diagnosed with dissociative personality disorder. She denied ever having felt anger even when the kids at school were rude or her parents yelled at her. Instead she created a personality that would protect her from these people that would hurt her. As therapy went on both of the personalities became more balanced and Kristen was able to stand up for herself instead of having Zac take care of the situation. Eventually her emotions were put back into equilibrium where she could express them fluidly. We all have stressor in our lives and it depends on how we manage our stress whether it is creating an alternate personality or planning some kinds of stress management systems that will help us get through the stressful times. There is a stress table found in a book written by Kearney and Trull (2012) that has four categories and a list of stressful items under each. The ones highest on the list are the things that most college students find stressful. In the first category, interpersonal, the only item on the list that I related to was the new boyfriend. I have been dating someone for five months which isnt really new but it is stressful for me because I realized that I only want to be friends, nothing more. Yet most return missionaries are looking for their future wife so I feel that I am stuck in a corner whenever a guy comes and talks to me and I have this mental block of go away, unless you promise to just be friends which is hardly ever the case. In the second category, intrapersonal, the third and fourth on the list are some items that are found on my stress list. I am still adjusting to the new responsibilities of being an adult. I now have to provide for myself and to handle myself financially which I have never

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done because my dad has always taken care of it. It is overwhelming to have school, finances, and social aspects dropped on you out of high school. It was definitely a huge load to lift. The last category that related to me is academics which are by far the most stressful for me. I have many strengths but school is not one of them. I have a very hard time remembering things and understanding what the teacher is asking me to do. These combined with wanting to do everything perfectly really does not help the relationship I have with school. All of these stresses listed above are very overwhelming and hard to balance much of the time. I find that the best way to manage stress is taught in the movie, What About Bob? which is to take baby steps. I have to take baby steps to prove to myself that I can do the big things by breaking it up into smaller pieces. This can be applied to the stress I feel with relationships, financial duties, new responsibilities, and school. I need to look at the little thing that I know that I can do now, do it, and then move on to the next step. That is my plan for the future, baby steps. Discussion It was fun to learn about the variety of mental disorders but the most interesting thing was how normal people had similar symptoms as those that have mental disorders but not as drastic. However, anyone can get a mental disorder if we let the stressful things in our life get swept underneath the rug until the rug cannot hide the stress anymore and it is released from our bodies in another way. I believe there are ways to keep your mind healthy as one can keep their bodies healthy. You have to keep nurturing brain with knowledge then put it into practice to keep your brain fit. Our whole body is interconnected and it is hard to keep it in balance but I think that as long as you practice doing good wholesome activities, many of the risk factors for a mental

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illness will be decreased but of course not eliminated. You may do everything that you can to keep from getting sick but still get sick anyways. The key is to do what you can and take it one step at a time.

FINAL EXAMINATION: BABY STEPS

References Humphreys, C. B. (2005). The assimilation of anger in a case of dissociative identity disorder. Counselling Psychology Quarterly, 18(2), 121-132. Kearney, C.A. and Trull, T.J. (2012). Abnormal psychology and life. A dimensional approach. Wadsworth, Cengage Learning, 157-167 Sargent, Alvin & Ziskin, Laura. Frank Oz (1991). What about bob? United States of America: Touchstone Pictures.