The Case of Magenta C Magenta C. is a 21-year-old college student studying art h
ID: 130018 • Letter: T
Question
The Case of Magenta C Magenta C. is a 21-year-old college student studying art history at a college in a major U.S. city She had maintained an almost perfect GPA up until about 3 months ago, at which point she started to lose focus and neglect her responsibilities as a student. She sought the help of a therapist after realizing that she could no longer keep up with the demands of her schedule and, consequently, was unable to "do hat needed to be done for peace of mind. Magenta C. lived at home with her mother, and was employed at her university's bookstore as a part-time cashier. She came from a working-class family. Her parents separated when she was a child. leaving. She last saw her father at her sister's funeral. He has made little effort to contact her or her mother, and has only spoken with her once since leaving-which was on her 16th birthday. She remembers as a child how she used to convince herself that her father would return by the time she counted to 20. She used to wake up every morning and count to twenty to see if he would then return. If she didn't count in the morning, she would feel anxious and uneasy that day at school, wondering if he would have come back that day had she remembered to count. Magenta C.'s only sibling, Maria, died 5 years ago at the age of 14 after being hit by a drunk driver while riding her bike with Magenta C. on the side of the road. Magenta C. describes this incident ividly, and recalls her most recent flashback of the event with great detail and emotion. She expresses a feeling of guilt for having survived rather than her sister. Today, Magenta C. is no longer able to ride a bike anymore, and says that the flashbacks are a constant reminder that "her life could be taken at any moment" Magenta C. was extremely thin. During her intake interview she sat rigidly in her chair with her hands tightly folded, and she maintained an expressionless gaze and tone of voice. She had stated that he and her boyfriend, Kevin, had just terminated their relationship after several years of being together. The relationship was described as one with extreme emotional turmoil. Magenta C.'s mother did not seem to like Kevin, and was very cold and aloof whenever he came to the house. Whenever Magenta C. had talked about the possibility of marrying Kevin, her mother responded by saying how tired she was and how Magenta C. needed to stay at home so she could take care of her mother. Magenta C. felt torn between her mother and Kevin. She has had frequent crying spells over the last few months and has had great difficulty falling asleep at night. She feels that her lack of general interests may be contributing to her poor performance in schoolExplanation / Answer
Since Majenta has not been able to cope with her work,studies and family it was concluded that she was suffering from major depression. Depending upon the severity of the condition various therapies can be used,like antidepressents,psychotherapy or even talk therapy like cognitive behavioural therapy. Drug therapy is quite effective in treating depression.Psychological interventions, especially cognitive-behavioral therapy and similar approaches can have superior effect on treating major depression. Since use of drugs is quite temporary and cant be lifelong therefore to treat Majenta completely cognitive therapy is the best option. The therapist can use CBT which helps in fostering a collaborative working relationship between the clinician and the patient by adopting scientific approach. CBT will encourage the application of several mini "experiments," where Majenta can add, remove, and change certain aspects of her thoughts and behaviors to determine the specific effect,and the therapist can help her with that. Helping her to isolate her negative,challenging thoughts and encouraging her to engage in behaviours that would reduce these thoughts can help her overcome her depression. The core beliefs she is holding about the guilt related to her sister's accident,parent seperation,not being able to carry on a relationship all has made her extremely helpless. CBT will help her acquire new behaviours to overcome these negavtive thoughts and start a new chapter in life. The treatment needs to be long lasting therefore this therapy would work best. Mild medications could be used for a short period of time just to relax her mind.