“ Girl, Interrupted” and Diagnosis Angelina Jolie
“ Girl, Interrupted” is a film about young women who stays at McLean Hospital for a very long time. The film gives us a broader picture of the lives of women who suffer from severe mental illness. Susanna is the main character in the film. She was diagnosed with borderline personality disorder. Lisa (Angelica Jolie) is also a patient at the hospital, and she is one of Susanna’s friends. Lisa was diagnosed with sociopath which is an antisocial personality disorder. Lisa shows the character of a dominant individual. She managed to convince Susanna to ignore and resist treatment. Lisa tends to provide a wide range of emotions. Lisa has been inside and outside the facility countless times because of her erratic behavior.
An antisocial personality disorder is one of the most reliably diagnosed illnesses among the personality disorders. Treatment effort for this condition is difficult. The hope for therapy has not vanished entirely because about two-thirds of psychiatrists have a thought that psychopathic disorder is a condition that can be treated ( Rotgers & Maniacci, 2006) . It is essential to note that diagnostic refinement is vital before any treatment is carried out. The level of psychopathy in the individual with antisocial personality disorder must be determined before moving to the next step.
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The Diagnostic Criteria
There are repetitive encounters where Lisa violates the rights of other individuals. This started when she attained 15 years. The following traits were experienced;
Poor impulse
Aggressiveness and irritability
Failure to plan ahead
Careless disregard for safety of herself as well as others
Consistent irresponsibility; Lisa has been in and out of hospital but does not seem to take medication seriously. She convinces other Susanna to resist treatment.
Lack of remorse
Deceitfulness, she repeatedly lie to others for individual profit
Lisa has attained the age of 18 years, and she is fit for treatment. Conduct disorder was experienced before she attained 15 years. An individual suffering from antisocial personality disorder sounds to be very different from others. They are likely to manipulate others through intimidation or deceit. This trait is clearly witnessed in Lisa as she interacts with other patients at the hospital. She shows a blatant disregard for things that are right and wrong. She does not behave in a responsible manner as normal people do. She is more of a loner who does not care about the feelings and welfare of those who are around her.
This kind of disorder is usually characterized by the violation of the rights of one’s self and those of others. This usually begins in childhood and early adolescence as seen in Lisa’s case. It is more likely to continue into adulthood and old age if it is not treated early enough. These antisocial characteristics are reflected in things such as academic failure, poor performance at work, carelessness, as well as impulsive behavior. The list of these features goes on and on depending on what the patient does.
Case Formulation
Watching the film and reading about the signs and symptoms of antisocial personality disorder has enabled me to understand the condition in a better perspective. As the diagnostic criteria have shown, an antisocial personality disorder is quite complicated and Lisa exhibit behaviors that are opposite with those of a normal person.
Lisa experiences a feeling of subjective dysphoria which is normally characterized by depression, unnecessary tension, a feeling of being victimized by being forced to undergo treatment, and the inability to tolerate boredom. A minority of individuals who suffer from antisocial personality disorder experience severe psychopathy while the majority has treatment prognosis that is poor when compared to patients who suffer from a non-psychopathic antisocial personality disorder.
Lisa’s parents try their best to keep her in hospital in order to get treatment, but she feels as if they hate her and that is why they are “victimizing” her by keeping her there. The condition has put her in a situation where she does not want to accept that she is sick and need help. Lisa needs to undergo counseling and guidance for her to come to terms with reality. She does not trust anybody including the doctors and nurses who attend to her. I feel that trying to listen to what she has to say might make her trust someone. A counselor can play an essential role in interacting with her and eventually guiding her on what she needs to do once they come to terms with each other ( Moran, 1999) . Being left in the care of nurses alone seems tough and may not solve the issue soon enough.
Everyone needs friends around them. Lisa should be given enough freedom to interact with other patients, but there must be close supervision in order to ensure that she does not manipulate them as she has been doing. Based on my observation, Lisa should be told about the importance of leading a healthy life and the benefits that come with it. She has experienced sickness since she was young. Showing her the positive side of things might enable her to have the urge to undertake treatment in order to heal and enjoy life like other individuals who are out of hospital environments. These are important factors that should be put into consideration and action in order to make the treatment process successful.
Treatment Process
The process of treating antisocial personality disorder is not as easy as people may think. It involves a set of activities that are usually time-consuming and require a lot of patience from the patient. ( McCallum, 2001). Lisa is expected to develop a positive attitude towards and throughout her treatment for her to overcome it by the end of the process. The treatment plan is ideal for her and it can to work magic if she cooperates. She should start her treatment after thorough counseling from an expert because she needs the strength and motivation to fight to the end. Lisa’s family members and friends should consider giving her the reason to fight even more. They must give her 100% support during this period.
Treatment Plan
Problem 1 :
Poor impulse control as indicated by numerous disagreements with nurses. There was also the aspect of losing control when angry
Goal : Lisa will learn how to use her feelings of anger in an appropriate way. This will be the primary goal of the treatment process.
Objective 1 : Lisa will have discussions with his counselor about five times when she misused her anger. This will help the counselor to know if she has accepted the fact that her anger harms other people around her.
Intervention : the therapist will assign Lisa the work of listing about five times when she used anger inappropriately. This should be done at home.
* Responsible therapist: _______________________________
Objective 2 : Lisa will be asked to talk in a group about her understanding of what she needs to do in a different way in order for her to cope with her anger by the end of the treatment process. Intervention : The therapist will ensure that Lisa shares in a group about her understanding of what she needs to do in a different way in order for her to cope with her anger by the end of the treatment process.
* Responsible therapist: _______________________________
Objective 3 : Lisa is expected to visit the staff psychologist for her to learn and practice techniques of stress management by the end of the treatment process.
Intervention : the staff psychologist will be in charge of teaching the patient about stress management techniques that include progressive biofeedback, relaxation, and systematic desensitization.
* Responsible therapist: _______________________________
Objective 4 : Lisa will be expected to record a daily log of her anger. She will also participate in discussing the log with her therapist on a weekly basis. This will help to know her progress in anger management.
Intervention : The therapist will assign Lisa to preserve a daily record of her feelings of anger and also make use of subjective units to try and distress in order to rate everything on a scale of 1 to 100. This is what will determine her progress in the treatment process.
* Responsible therapist: _______________________________
Objective 5 : Lisa will share her angry feelings in a group of other patients.
Intervention : the therapist will encourage Lisa to share her feelings record in the group.
* Responsible therapist: _______________________________
Objective 6 : Lisa will be expected to practice telling others her hurt as well as anger with her family and friends in a session that is conjoint.
Intervention : The therapist will have the patient share her hurt and angry feelings with family and friends, and make a written agreement to stay close to one another and always contact the counselor or therapist when she is angry in order to avoid hurting her feelings and theirs.
* Responsible therapist: _______________________________
Objective 7 : Lisa will have to attend a group session of anger management one day in a week.
Intervention : The therapist will refer Lisa to the group and also make the very first appointment when Lisa is present.
* Responsible therapist: _______________________________
Problem 2:
Deceitfulness, as she repeatedly lied to Susanna that she did not require the treatment. She was also seen convincing Susanna to resist treatment and that she did okay and did not need it at all.
Goal : Lisa will learn how to speak the truth and how to avoid lying to others. She will be asked to admit that she made a mistake and agree that she is willing to work towards changing the bad habit and behavior.
Objective 1 : Lisa will be required to identify with her therapist five instances when she deceived others and give reasons why she did it.
Intervention : the therapist will be responsible for asking Lisa to identify five times when she deceived other people and ask her to give reasons why she did it.
* Responsible therapist: _______________________________
Objective 2 : Lisa will be asked to share in a group about her understanding of what she needs to change concerning the behavior of deceiving others in order for her to cope with the issue by the end of the treatment process.
Intervention : The therapist will ensure that Lisa talks about her understanding of what she needs to do differently in a group in order for her to cope with her deceiving habit by the end of the treatment process.
* Responsible therapist: _______________________________
Objective 3 : Lisa will take the required medicine as prescribed by the therapist and be able to report some of the side effects to the doctor in charge.
Intervention : The therapist will be expected to examine the patient as well as the order medications that have been indicated while the doctors check for the side effects.
* Responsible therapist: _______________________________
Other tips that can help Lisa during her treatment
In conclusion, it is possible for Lisa to change the way she feels, thinks, and reacts to certain situations. This is something that takes effort and time to achieve. The best ways to start the process include attending all counseling appointments, taking medication as required by the therapists, and being consistent with treatment ( Davidson, 2014) . Routine can be very useful in other ways. Lisa must also eat her meals on a regular basis and create the routine. She can exercise on a daily basis to help her unwind and also keep fit. Keeping stress levels low and taking a walk on a regular basis is also useful in treating antisocial personality treatment. Lisa is further advised to consume more vegetables and fruits and avoid eating junk food. She is also supposed to avoid taking alcohol and drugs. Surrounding herself with people who matter to her also can play a role in improving her mental health. These include friends, family, as well as the treatment team. Sharing what she feels, engaging in hobbies, and supportive families will also help during therapy.
References
Davidson, M. (2014). How Is Dan Doing? Coping with Antisocial Personality Disorder: A Memoir . City: Outskirts Press.
McCallum, D. (2001). Personality and Dangerousness: Genealogies of Antisocial Personality Disorder . Cambridge New York: Cambridge University Press.
Moran, P. (1999). Antisocial Personality Disorder: An Epidemiological Perspective . London: Gaskell Distributed by American Psychiatric Press, Inc.
Rotgers, F. & Maniacci, M. (2006). Antisocial Personality Disorder: A Practitioner's Guide to Comparative Treatments . New York: Springer Pub.
