Alleia Yzobelle M.

Ararao Abnormal Psychology

BS Psychology 3A February 27, 2024

PSYCHOLOGICAL REPORT

Patient Information:
Name: Nico
Age: 27 years old
Gender: Male

Reason for the psychological report:

Treatment Planning

Current symptoms and presenting concerns:

He had unusual behaviors that have affected his physical, emotional, and cognitive
functioning. Nico began to lose weight, being in a depressed mood, and struggled to
concentrate on his studies. Despite his quiet disposition, he started to exhibit behaviors
that were contrary to his personality, such as being extremely talkative and being overly
sociable with others. He also had suicidal ideations and attempts.
Nico’s psychiatrist diagnosed him with bipolar disorder and he underwent
pharmacological and psychological treatment. Nico sought to normalize his
psychological process, especially his eating pattern. He also struggled to keep his anger
under control. Sometimes he exhibits outbursts, characterized by shouting intensely.
Nico also revealed that he would disconnect from reality for some time when faced with
overwhelming emotional stress.

Psychosocial History
Family History
Nico is the eldest of two children. Both his parents were preoccupied with their
respective careers. As a result, Nico and his sister spent most time with their nanny. At
the age of two, his mother had to work abroad and was frequently away due to her
business trips. In essence, she was physically absent on Nico’s childhood until he was
seven years old. Being left with their Nanny, Nico and his sister had experienced
abusive treatment, threats, and physical maltreatment for two whole years.
When he was in the university, Nico mentioned that the family atmosphere was stressful
due to the frequent argument of her parents. He further described his mother as lenient
but imposing. While his father was more understanding despite being a strict
disciplinarian. Furthermore, each member of their family seemed to have independent
lives, each of them existing in isolation despite being under one roof.

Educational History
Nico shared that his early childhood was happy and filled with positive memories, his
preschool memories in particular. However, when he entered grade school, he
experienced being bullied by his classmates and he was subjected to verbal abuse;
constantly being made fun of. This caused him to feel unmotivated to go to school. Nico
said that he was not academically smart and was an average student thus his peers did
not want to be friends with him. It was noted that he usually received verbal reprimands
from his parents due to his average academic performance. Although things started to
be better when he entered high school. He became more focused in his studies hence
having good grades. His high school in general, he said, was filled with a sense of
achievement, competence, and belongingness. Due to this, he got into a prominent
university and devoted much of his focus, effort, and time on his studies.

Occupational History
Within a range of ten months to two years, Nico had worked in three different
companies. He mentioned that he loved the first company he worked for but he felt like
he was lagging behind his colleagues and was constantly feeling like a failure. On the
other hand, Nico enjoyed his second employment and had a competent performance.
However, this ended by the time he shouted at a client; this revealed that he had poor
interpersonal skills. Moreover, Nico found it difficult to stay on his third job as he couldn’t
meet the demands of the job. He was dissatisfied and pressured which led him to quit.
Nico has been unemployed for more than a year. His past job experiences made him
feel like he was a failure, inadequate, and frustrated with himself. This led him to
depression and has thus stopped seeking for employment; spending most of his time
isolated and detached from reality.

Psychiatric or Psychological History

After Nico’s suicidal attempts, his family referred him to professional help. He was then
diagnosed with bipolar disorder. It was significantly mentioned that Nico’s mother has
been dealing with a psychological condition that was not disclosed. Though her
symptoms manifest similar to depression. It was also revealed that a mood disorder
runs in their family.
Social History
Nico did not have many friends growing up. However, by time he entered high school,
he learned how to manage bullying and his social life in general improved significantly.
He was able to establish meaningful friendships and had fun memories. Although things
started to fall apart. When he was in college, Nico dreamed of being in a romantic
relationship. He got smitten towards this girl who rejected him eventually. His friends
accused and backstabbed him. Over time, he disconnected and isolated himself from
his friends and former classmates. It came to a point that Nico considered himself
unworthy of his friends’ and loved ones’ attention and time.

Psychological Intervention
Psychotherapy
A Cognitive Behavioral Therapy might be helpful for Nico to get his normal life back.
With weekly sessions, Nico might possibly identify his negative thought patterns which
in turn could help him learn manage his emotions and behaviors more effectively. A CBT
could reduce Nico’s mood episodes as well as reduce his symptoms of depression.
Lifestyle Change
Nico aimed to balance his eating patterns. With this, it is recommended for him to
maintain a healthy diet. It may be helpful if he has a guide on food that could nourish his
body and mind. Planning his meals and snacks may be beneficial.
Furthermore, it is important to have regular sleep-wake patterns. Getting enough sleep
may contribute to improved physical, cognitive, and emotional functioning.
Engaging in regular exercise can also help improve his mood stability contributing to a
holistic approach.
Mindfulness-Based Interventions
Nico may benefit from said therapies as this could help develop awareness of one’s
thoughts. Being grounded on one’s thoughts is helpful in managing emotional
dysregulation as well as sudden outbursts.
Family-Focused Therapy
Nico’s family was one of the factors for him to learn that isolating oneself was
normalized. It was also mentioned that he was often pressured to the fear of
disappointing his family. With this, a family-focused therapy may help Nico and his
family in general to develop healthy communication patterns and on how to support
each other, most especially Nico.
With the guidance of the psychotherapist and the willingness and determination of Nico
to get his normal life back, as well as the abovementioned psychological interventions,
battling bipolar disorder would soon be overcome.