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Essay

Mental health status

Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorder (DSM-V) criteria is integrated for evaluating the psychological state of Munny. The components of mental state examination identified in case of the patient include diminished interest of pleasure behavior and speech CITATION Chr171 \l 1033 (Iliades, 2017). During Munny’s interaction with the nurse he exhibits inappropriate behavior because he fails to maintain eye contract. Munny continuously stares on the floor due to his inability of building eye contact. He only gives monosyllabic answers to the nurse such as ‘fine’ and ‘no-problem’. During most of the interaction he remains silent and shook his head. This another symptom of depression because Munny avoids to give proper answers. He remains silent or rely in one words. He lacks ability of speaking spontaneously. Examination of the mental state also exhibits speech disorder because the patient is unable to transmit complete information. Mono-syllables are used only that reflects the limited ability of speech. Depression has impacted patient’s speech and behavioral competency CITATION Joh041 \l 1033 (Markowitz & Weissman, 2004).

The assessment of Munny’s condition reveals that he is less communicative, takes limited no interest in work and takes more sick leaves. He hardly communicates with the family or children and his participation has declined in routine activities. According to DSM-V criteria depression is a mental illness that has negative impacts on the life of individual by influencing his way of thinking CITATION Car10 \l 1033 (Hughes, et al., 2010). Depression is a mood disorder that restrict individual’s ability to behave normal.

Depressed mood and loss of interest is a sign that individual appears to be irritable almost everyday. Feelings of sadness and emptiness causes loss of interest in activities that the patient used to enjoy. The condition of Munny indicates that he has lost interest in routine activities which is apparent in his changing attitude towards the children. He used to spend time with his kids and enjoyed it but now he has distanced himself from them. This kind of feelings leads to emotional problems that declines patient’s ability to function in appropriate manner CITATION Fré17 \l 1033 (Krugten, Kaddouri, Goorden, Anton J. L. M. van Balkom, Peeters, & Roijen, 2017). Anxiousness and restlessness are common symptoms noted in case of the current patient CITATION Erl18 \l 1033 (Turner, 2018). Munny is less likely to find pleasure in routine activities and prefers to stay in his room. The change in behavior reveals that he has alienated from the society, also he avoids his family and kids. Isolation is another dominant symptom of depression.

Changes in appetite is another significant factor that confirms that Munny is undergoing depressive symptoms. He is showing no interest in eating or taking food that resulted in weight loss. Decline in weight has also caused loss of energy that limits patient’s ability of participating in daily activities. Munny is unable to eat food when he is depressed that is risky because it can deteriorate physical health. Weight loss is not a good sign in patient’s case CITATION WKy16 \l 1033 (Simmons, et al., 2016). Loss in appetite confirms hypoactivation.

Factors contributing to development of mental health status

Two common factors that resulted in depression of Munny include job insecurity and death of his mother. Munny found his job extremely stressful because he had to start work at 1 am. Still his employer was dissatisfied from him and warned to improve his performance. This created job insecurity that further caused depression. Job insecurity or dissatisfaction is one of the challenging situations faced by the employer at work. The fear of losing job undermines the work capability of the employee. In Munny’s case this is one of the pressing concerns because irrespective of all his efforts he fails to receive appreciation from the employer CITATION Sar19 \l 1033 (Menéndez-Espina, Llosa, Agulló-Tomás, Rodríguez-Suárez, Sáiz-Villar, & Lahseras-Díez, 2019). Fear of losing his job influenced his work capability negatively. There is significant relationship between job insecurity and mental health. Munny’s disappointed is also the result of his job dissatisfaction because he believes that he his job is tough. The work hours have put more pressure on Munny but he keeps on working. Conditions of extreme disappointment and hopelessness have resulted in depression.

Death or loss is one of the significant factor that develop feelings of sadness or grief. Complicated grief is the cause of major depression in Munny’s case. Intense sorrow and emotional pain are symptoms of complicated grief. Munny was attached to his mother and because more close after the death of his father in Khmer Rouge period. He witnessed the darkest incident of that period and death of his father that promoted feelings of insecurity. The event still remained fresh in Munny’s memory and he continued to see his mother during her hospitalization. She died from cancer after a struggle of six months. These events had negative and long-lasting implications on patient’s personality. Depression is also linked to the feelings of complicated grief that creates difficulty to manage emotions. Munny had not taken off-time from work after the death of mother because he wanted to overcome his grief. The behavior of the patient depicts that he misses the company of his mother. He has not been able to accept her loss that creates feelings of disinterest.

Complicated grief is one of the prominent reasons of depression that develops on losing a loved one. Patient who develop extreme depression face difficulty in coping with their troubled emotions. The patient feels alone, detached from the society or people. In the current case Munny has locked himself in a room as he spend most of his time in isolation. This confirms the grief as a cause of depression. Depression has convinced him to feel alone as he developed distrust towards others. It is thus difficult for him to pursue interest or focus on his job. Munny is at a stage where he has lost interest or purpose of his life. He believes that life is meaningless without his mother.

Positive aspects of mental health recovery

Three positive aspects of mental health recovery include respect, empowerment and hope. The current situation depicts that Munny is lacking dignity due to his employment issue. However mental health recovery will allow him to regain dignity and honor. The reason for his alienation from society is also absence of dignity. He fears to meet people, hence spends more time in isolation. Dignity will allow him to change is thinking by believing that people shows respect and honor. It is further linked to self worth and individuality. Studies reveal that dignity is important because, “first is the self-worth as perceived by the individual and the second is the worth of the individual which is reflected in the respectful attitudes and practices of others” CITATION She151 \l 1033 (Saxena & Hanna, 2015). By developing feelings of self-worth the patient overcomes his emotions of worthlessness. Dignity is identified as one of the fundamental principle needed for the removing negative perceptions about the people and society.

Empowerment is another important aspects of mental health recovery that convince patient to adopt positive attitudes towards the people and mental health problems. Self-empowerment creates a positive feeling that the patient is capable of controlling his state of helplessness by focusing on positive aspects. Empowering attitude is useful because it allow the patient to deal with the stressful situations. Munny could overcome his feelings of worthlessness by empowering himself. This will assist him in dealing with the work pressure or criticism from the employer. Empowerment is also linked to patient’s willingness to improve. This is crucial for creating equal relationship and an empowering environment. By developing empowering attitudes Munny would be able to take better decisions and choices. Empowerment is thus important for attaining self-efficacy and believing that an individual has ability to influence his life in a positive way. Empowerment is useful for improving the professional competency and work capacity of the patient. Self-sufficiency will allow Munny to handle negative situations at workplace CITATION Nee16 \l 1033 (Aggarwal, 2016). Self-empowerment will help Munny to identify ways for controlling his troubled emotions and behaviors.

Hope is a positive aspects of mental health recovery that convince patients to replace feelings of disappointment. It is based on the idea that patient has a desire of getting better. Hope is thus an important part of the recovery process that motivate the patient to maintain hope even in the worst situations of disappointment. Clinical studies have revealed that without hope it is not possible to attain recovery. Promoting hope requires a personally unique process of transforming one’s attitudes, values, goals, feelings, skills and roles CITATION Tan17 \l 1033 (Acharya & Agius, 2017). The process of recovery allow patient to create a new meaning in life that is effective for replacing his feelings of worthlessness. Depression is apparent in the negative moods or distanced relationship of Munny with his children. Creating hope will be effective in Munny’s case because he will learn to deal with his negative emotions.

The thee aspects will paly a positive role in changing the mental state of Munny. Respect, empowerment and hope are essential for recovering from the state of extreme depression.

References

BIBLIOGRAPHY Acharya, T., & Agius, M. (2017). THE IMPORTANCE OF HOPE AGAINST OTHER FACTORS IN THE RECOVERY OF MENTAL ILLNESS . Psychiatria Danubina, 29 (3), 619-622.

Aggarwal, N. (2016). Empowering People with Mental Illness within Health Services. Acta Psychopathologica.

Iliades, C. (2017). Adjusting Your Depression Treatment Plan . Retrieved 03 20, 2019, from https://www.everydayhealth.com/hs/major-depression/adjusting-depression-treatment-plan/

Hughes, C. W., Trivedi, M. H., Cleaver, J., Greer, T. L., Emslie, G. J., Kennard, B., et al. (2010). DATE: Depressed adolescents treated with exercise: Study rationale and design for a pilot study. Ment Health Phys Ac, 2 (2), 76–85.

Krugten, F. C., Kaddouri, M., Goorden, M., Anton J. L. M. van Balkom, C. L., Peeters, F. P., & Roijen, L. H.-v. (2017). Indicators of patients with major depressive disorder in need of highly specialized care: A systematic review. PLOS One.

Markowitz, J. C., & Weissman, M. M. (2004). Interpersonal psychotherapy: principles and applications. World Psychiatry, 3 (3), 136–139.

Menéndez-Espina, S., Llosa, J. A., Agulló-Tomás, E., Rodríguez-Suárez, J., Sáiz-Villar, R., & Lahseras-Díez, H. F. (2019). Job Insecurity and Mental Health: The Moderating Role of Coping Strategies From a Gender Perspective. Front Psychol. , 10 (286).

Saxena, S., & Hanna, F. (2015). Dignity- a fundamental principle of mental health care. Indian J Med Res , 124 (4), 355–358.

Simmons, W. K., Burrows, K., Avery, J. A., Kerr, K. L., Bodurka, J., Savage, C. R., et al. (2016). Depression-Related Increases and Decreases in Appetite: Dissociable Patterns of Aberrant Activity in Reward and Interoceptive Neurocircuitry. Am J Psychiatry, 173 (4), 418–428.

Turner, E. A. (2018). Exercise May Help Reduce Depression in Teens . Retrieved 03 20, 2019, from https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/the-race-good-health/201801/exercise-may-help-reduce-depression-in-teens