Do you find similarities between yourself and Paul?
Paul is a 25 year old man who was diagnosed with depression eight months ago. He was referred by his key worker for psychological input relating to low mood, anger, anxiety and social isolation. He has 2 children under the age of 3 who live with his partner in her parents’ house. Paul’s referral was preceded by a seven week therapeutic journey. A row in his relationship led to a temporary break up. He had threatened his wife several times and their fights would end up being physical. This made him start therapy again.
He initially appeared somewhat nervous and reported no previous psychological input. Nevertheless, he seemed keen to discuss his difficulties and stated that he would like to ‘get some help’ for how he has been feeling. He described persistent low mood and anxiety, and identified his perceived difficulty managing feelings of intense anger as his main priority. His current problems had escalated to the extent that for the last few months he had been avoiding leaving the house because of the feelings of anger triggered in him by ‘totally irrelevant things’. These factors have led to a considerable restriction of Paul’s current life. He described never having been able to hold down a job, due to feeling victimised and criticised by employers. Although he thought the anti-depressant medication he has been taking had been helpful, he still says, “I’m in a bad mood all the time”. He also described a persistent feeling that people don’t like him.
Paul is under the care of a therapist who uses psychoanalytic therapy. He visits his therapist on a weekly basis. He still has depressive feelings but is more aware of them when he has a setback. He reminds himself to be resilient everyday. If you found similarities between yourself and Paul, our team would be able to help you.
Personal details have been changed to preserve confidentiality.