PSY 275 Week 5 Childhood, Eating and Personality Disorders Example

Three Lives, Three Kinds of Disorder: ADHD, Anorexia Nervosa and Borderline Personality Disorder

[Student Name]

University of Phoenix

PSY/275: Introduction to Abnormal Psychology

Week 5 Assignment

[Instructor Name]

[Date]

The three people described are composites written for a model paper; research findings come from the sources listed.

Some psychological disorders appear first in childhood, some often begin in adolescence and some describe long-standing patterns in adulthood. This final paper compares one condition from each of these groups, using composite cases from Arizona to show how they are recognized, why they develop and how they are treated.

Noah: Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder

Noah is eight and in third grade in Gilbert. His teacher reports that he leaves his seat constantly, blurts out answers, loses materials and rarely finishes assignments. His parents see the same patterns at home: homework takes hours, and he forgets instructions within minutes. These behaviors have been present since preschool and are now affecting his friendships.

ADHD involves persistent patterns of inattention, hyperactivity and impulsivity that appear before age twelve, occur in more than one setting and interfere with functioning. Noah's symptoms meet these requirements. A clinician would gather standardized ratings from parents and teachers, rule out vision, hearing or learning problems and consider anxiety, which can also disrupt attention.

Polanczyk et al. (2007) systematically reviewed prevalence studies from around the world and estimated that roughly five percent of children and adolescents have ADHD, with differences between regions explained mostly by differences in research methods rather than geography. This finding counters the idea that ADHD is a product of one country's culture. Twin studies show strong genetic influence, and brain imaging studies point to differences in attention and control networks.

Treatment for children Noah's age typically combines behavioral parent training, classroom supports such as frequent breaks and clear routines and, when needed, stimulant medication, which has strong evidence for reducing symptoms.

Brianna: Anorexia Nervosa

Brianna is nineteen and runs cross-country at a university in Flagstaff. Over the past year she has restricted her eating, runs extra miles after practice and has lost a large amount of weight. She is terrified of gaining weight even though teammates say she looks unwell, and she has stopped having menstrual periods. Her coach noticed she nearly fainted during a workout and called the team physician.

Anorexia nervosa involves restriction of food intake leading to a body weight well below what is healthy, deep fear of weight gain and a disturbed experience of body weight or shape. Bulimia nervosa, by contrast, involves recurrent binge eating followed by behaviors such as vomiting or excessive exercise, usually at normal weight, and binge-eating disorder involves binges without those behaviors.

Arcelus et al. (2011) pooled thirty-six studies and showed that people with anorexia nervosa had a markedly elevated mortality rate compared with the general population, with about one in five deaths due to suicide. Brianna's near-fainting is a medical warning sign. She needs medical assessment for heart, electrolyte and bone problems, nutritional rehabilitation and therapy. For adolescents and young adults, family-based treatment, which involves parents in restoring nutrition, has research support.

Alicia: Borderline Personality Disorder

Alicia is thirty and works in retail in Phoenix. Her friendships begin intensely and often end abruptly when she feels let down. She describes feeling empty, shifts quickly between anger and despair and has cut herself after arguments when she feared her partner would leave. These patterns go back to her early teens and have cost her two jobs.

Personality disorders are enduring patterns of inner experience and behavior that deviate from cultural expectations, are inflexible and cause distress or impairment, usually beginning in adolescence or early adulthood. Borderline personality disorder involves instability in relationships, self-image and emotions, marked impulsivity and often self-harm or suicidal behavior.

Linehan et al. (2006) conducted a randomized trial comparing dialectical behavior therapy with treatment by community experts for women with borderline personality disorder and recent suicidal behavior. Over the treatment year and a year of follow-up, those receiving dialectical behavior therapy were about half as likely to attempt suicide and had fewer psychiatric hospitalizations and emergency visits. The therapy teaches skills in emotion regulation, distress tolerance, mindfulness and relationships, balanced with acceptance.

Alicia's outbursts look like anger at others, but research treats them as pain she has not yet learned to tolerate.

Autism and Other Childhood Conditions

Noah's teachers asked whether he might be autistic, a question worth addressing. Autism spectrum disorder involves lasting differences in how a person communicates and relates socially, along with narrow interests or repeated behaviors. Noah makes friends easily, understands social cues and has no unusual repetitive behaviors, so his profile fits ADHD better. The two conditions can co-occur, however, and a careful evaluation looks for both.

Early Signs and Prevention

Each condition has early signs that families and schools can notice. For ADHD, persistent problems across settings that do not improve with ordinary support. For eating disorders, rapid weight loss, rigid food rules and secretive eating or exercise; athletes in sports that emphasize weight are at higher risk. For borderline personality disorder, intense emotional swings and self-harm in adolescence. Earlier recognition generally leads to better outcomes.

Comparing the Three

The three conditions differ in timing: ADHD begins in childhood, anorexia often emerges in adolescence and personality disorders describe long-standing adult patterns. They also share features. Each involves biological vulnerability shaped by environment; each carries stigma that can delay help, from the idea that ADHD reflects bad parenting to the belief that eating disorders are vanity or that people with borderline personality disorder are manipulative; and each has evidence-based treatments that improve lives.

What the Course Has Shown

Across this course, the same themes recur. Mental disorders are defined by distress and dysfunction, not just difference. They grow out of biology, psychology and social circumstances acting together. Diagnosis is useful but imperfect. And for nearly every disorder studied, from anxiety and depression to psychosis and addiction, research supports treatments that help people recover or live well.

Conclusion

Noah's attention problems, Brianna's restriction and Alicia's emotional instability represent three different kinds of disorder, yet each is understandable, treatable and deserving of compassion. Research on ADHD prevalence, eating disorder mortality and dialectical behavior therapy shows both the seriousness of these conditions and the effectiveness of care.

References

Arcelus, J., Mitchell, A. J., Wales, J., & Nielsen, S. (2011). Mortality rates in patients with anorexia nervosa and other eating disorders: A meta-analysis of 36 studies. Archives of General Psychiatry, 68(7), 724-731. https://doi.org/10.1001/archgenpsychiatry.2011.74

Linehan, M. M., Comtois, K. A., Murray, A. M., Brown, M. Z., Gallop, R. J., Heard, H. L., Korslund, K. E., Tutek, D. A., Reynolds, S. K., & Lindenboim, N. (2006). Two-year randomized controlled trial and follow-up of dialectical behavior therapy vs therapy by experts for suicidal behaviors and borderline personality disorder. Archives of General Psychiatry, 63(7), 757-766. https://doi.org/10.1001/archpsyc.63.7.757

Polanczyk, G., de Lima, M. S., Horta, B. L., Biederman, J., & Rohde, L. A. (2007). The worldwide prevalence of ADHD: A systematic review and metaregression analysis. American Journal of Psychiatry, 164(6), 942-948. https://doi.org/10.1176/ajp.2007.164.6.942