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Henrietta Lacks and Her Immortal HeLa Cells
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Introduction
Cancer has been one of the most devastating ailments in the recent times. Indeed, statistics have shown that cancer is the second largest killer after malaria. A 2008 study showed that about 12.7 million new cases of cancer were diagnosed in the entire world, with female breast, lung, stomach and colorectal cancers being the most commonly diagnosed forms of cancers as they accounted for over 40% of all cases. On the same note, it is estimated that the disease causes more than 7 million deaths every year, with the figures continuing to rise. Needless to say, the ailment has claimed the lives of numerous people, both famous and nondescript. It is worth noting that extensive research has continually been done since time immemorial with an aim of having a comprehensive knowledge of the intricacies pertaining to cancer, its causes, symptoms, and especially, how it can be cured. While enormous discoveries have been made in this regard, one of the most fundamental discoveries in the history of cancer remains the HeLa cells. These cells are named after a woman called Henrietta Lacks, and are the basis of the book “The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks”.
“The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks” is a skillfully crafted investigation pertaining to a social wrong done in the medical field, as well as the resultant medical and scientific miracles. It takes the readers through the exceptional journey from the Johns Hopkins Hospital’s colored wards of the 1950’s to the white laboratories that have freezers full of HeLa Csells. It chronicles the journey from the small town of Clover, Virginia, where Henrietta Lacks used to live, to East Baltimore, where her kids and their kids currently live and fight with the legacy that her cells left. Indeed, it makes for a riveting story that details the collision between race, medicine and ethics, as well as a daughter that has numerous questions pertaining to the mother that she knew little about. Essentially, the story is connected to the dark history pertaining to the use of African Americans in experiments, the start of bioethics, as well as the legal battles pertaining to whether individuals have control over the materials that make them.
On 29th of January 1951, Henrietta Lacks was taken to Hopkins, which was the only key hospital close to their homes that could treat black patients. Lacks was diagnosed with cervical cancer and specifically the “Epidermoid carcinoma of the cervix, Stage I”. Henrietta had developed the cervical cancer known as carcinoma, which develops from epithelial cells covering and protecting the cervix’s surface. At this time, doctors in the institution were participating in a nationwide debate pertaining to the making of cervical cancer and the best technique for treating it. It was generally believed that the noninvasive type of cervical carcinomas were not fatal, in which case they mainly concentrated on treating the invasive type. However, one of the top cervical cancer experts Dr. Richard TeLinde disagreed with the notion and opined that the noninvasive type was simply an early stage of the invasive type. TeLinde had the uncanny history of using patients for research without their knowledge or consent. He had determined that 62% of women who had invasive cancer had initially been diagnosed with the noninvasive types. He contacted George Gey, who was Hopkins’ head of research on tissue culture in an effort to compare living samples derived from normal cervical cancer, and living samples from the invasive and noninvasive carcinoma. Gey had been striving to grow the first immortal human cells. In this case, Gey gladly tried to grow living samples from a supply of cervical cancer tissue that TeLinde offered him. It is worth noting that TeLinde had been collecting the tissues from all women that had cervical cancer including Henrietta Lacks. Lacks was, apparently treated successfully dr. Lawrence Wharton, who was a surgeon at Hopkins. Dr Wharton, however, collected samples samples of her healthy and cancerous cervical tissues and gave them to Dr. Gey, who successfully developed a culture of Henrietta’s cancerous cells. As the author notes, “Henrietta’s cells weren’t merely surviving, they were growing with mythological intensity” (Scloot 13). Unfortunately, Lacks died the same year at the age of 31. Following her death, doctors started planning an immense operation that would generate trillions of HeLa cells every week.
It is worth noting that HeLa cells have been used in the treatment of numerous ailments. Indeed, HeLa Cells have been crucial in the development of polio vaccine, uncovering of the varied hidden aspects of cancer, viruses, as well as the effects of atom bombs. In addition, it led in crucial advances in fields such as gene mapping, cloning, and in-vitro fertilization, as well as the treatment of influenza, herpes, leukemia, AIDS, Parkinson’s disease and hemophilia among others. The difference between Lack’s cells and those of others is that her cells had the capacity to live, as well as replicate outside the body. This essentially explains why just about any lab that deals with cell culture would have billions of the HeLa cells. The cells only need to be provided with the nutrients necessary for survival, after which they would apparently live and replicate forever. Testament to this is the fact that they have done this for the last 60 years since the first culture was obtained.
While this may be seen as a scientific breakthrough, the issue has raised numerous ethical issues. This is especially considering that Henrietta Lacks was not informed about the use of her cells in replication or even have her consent sought. Indeed, information pertaining to this was released 2 decades later. Neither her, nor her family had given consent to the use of such cells or even the release of such information to the public. In fact, the family came to know about it when companies started approaching them asking them for samples of their cells (Lodish 34). This essentially introduces a new dimension to the discussion, especially with regard to patient consent.
While the issues raised and the actions of the doctors at that time can only be termed as despicable, it is worth noting that there has been a paradigm shift in the laws governing medical research since the 1950s to the current times. Scholars have noted that, in that era, it was common for doctors and surgeons to obtain cells from their patients and use them in research and experiments without informing and seeking the permission of the patients or even their families (Lodish 45). The incident took place a long time prior to the adoption of ethical guidelines and regulations pertaining to biomedical research that currently requires researchers to get a voluntary, informed consent from their subjects or patients prior to the use of any of their information or cells in carrying out biomedical experiments (Lodish 45).
This, however, does not negate the irony of the fact that Henrietta’s kids were living a life of poverty in Baltimore, whereas their mother’s cells made up the first biological materials ever sold and bought and which played an immense role in assisting the launching of a multi-billion-dollar industry. Indeed, Henrietta’s family has largely been living a life of poverty with a large number of them being unable to afford even health insurance (Miller et al 34). In fact, one of Henrietta’s sons was homeless and lived in Baltimore’s streets.
This book comes with fundamental lessons to both the scientists and even people outside the labs. For scientists, the most fundamental less revolves around the fact that behind every biological sample that they use in the labs is a human being. Indeed, a large part of science is highly dependent on the use of human biological tissue in one way or the other. Unfortunately, scientists often see these cells as just some inanimate tools or instruments that are always in their labs (Miller et al 34). However, the individuals from whom these samples were derived had their own feelings and thoughts pertaining to the things that should happen to their tissues. Unfortunately, their thoughts and feelings are not considered a crucial variable when making such decisions. On the same note, it would be inaccurate to hold the story of the HeLa cells and the things that Henrietta went through as an illustration of a racist white scientist that was doing malicious things to a black woman. Indeed, as much as Hopkins was the key hospital that could treat black people, it is worth noting that other races were also treated in the same hospitals. What happened to her could also have happened to other women of other races, with the only difference being that her cells worked while the others did not (Miller et al 36). In any case, the surgeons and doctors did not violate any laws pertaining to privacy and informed consent as none existed at the time. On the same note, tissue culture is not bad at all especially considering the enormous proportion of medicine today that is dependent on tissue culture. Indeed, the demand for the cells will only rise in the future rather than go down. Rather than taking this as a cue for outlining the things that should not happen, it would be imperative that this comes as a wakeup call to determine the best way that tissue culture can occur in a way that would not leave anyone out.
In conclusion, the book “The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks” traces the life of a poor black woman, whose cells were the first ones to be successfully used in tissue culture. Henrietta Lacks was diagnosed with cervical cancer in January 1951 and died in October the same year. However, some tissue of her healthy and cancerous cervix were taken without her knowledge or consent and used in experimentation. It is worth noting that at that time, there were no rules pertaining to patient confidentiality and informed consent, in which case the doctors cannot be said to have acted illegally. However, it is ironical that her children have been living in poverty whereas her cells were the foundation of a multi-billion industry. This, nevertheless, should not be used as an illustration of a white racist doctor who took advantage of a black woman. It is imperative that doctors acknowledge that the cells they use were derived from people who have their feelings and thoughts regarding what happens to their tissue.
Works cited
Skloot, Rebecca. The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks. New York: Crown Publishers, 2010. Print
Lodish, Harvey F. Molecular Cell Biology. New York: Freeman, 2012. Print.
Miller, Tina., Birch, Maxine., Mauthner, Melanie and Jessop, Julie. Ethics in Qualitative Research. New York: SAGE, Sep 13, 2012. Print
Community College Access Crossing the threshold of a Dream Deferred
Community College Access: Crossing the threshold of a Dream Deferred
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Annotated Bibliography
Ali-Coleman, K. Z. (2019). Essential Pathways: An Examination of How Community College Compromise Their Unique Contribution to American Higher Education. Higher Education Politics & Economics, 5(1), 54-69. Retrieved September 1, 2022, from https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ1251497.pdf
Dr. Khadijah Z. Ali-Coleman is a lady who has immersed herself in research. She is the director of Black Family Homeschool Educators and Scholars (BFHES). She attained her doctorate from Morgan State University in Higher Education/Community College. Her background inspired her dissertation on community college access. She has written four publications that have gained 26 reads from researchgate. The article has also gathered eight citations on google scholar. This proves her publication is standard and can be used as a source in my study. The article contains all the required content concerning community college. In her article, she addresses how community college compromises their unique Contribution to American Higher Education. According to Ali-Coleman (2019), Community colleges have significantly contributed to the American system’s higher education. It has also championed the applicability, open access, and affordability doctrine. The current condition of supporting students, college loans, and commercial collaborations all negatively influence the application of these objectives.
Bond, D., Jones, M., Meyer, J., Page, B., Surratt, J., Webster, A., & Wright, B. (2019, July 15). Communication and Data Sharing between K-12 and Community Colleges. ERIC Institute of Education Sciences. Retrieved September 1, 2022, from https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ1224777.pdf
The article addresses how communication and data sharing have been happening in community colleges. The information from this article will be useful in my study in addressing issues concerned with college access. The study focuses on communication which is essential in addressing the concept of Crossing the threshold of a Dream Deferred in college. In their findings, bond et al. (2019) found that sharing information was critical among students and school workers. The authors recommend dual enrollment strategies as one of the key strategies to enhance communication among college students. The authors of this article have written many other publications, making them recognized and credited authors. For instance, Debbie Bond is a lecturer at New River Community College and works as Dean of Business and Technologies. This article has had 160 downloads since its publication in 2019. The article presents a strong argument for why communication is necessary for colleges. The message provides a good basis for my study. However, the study lacks adequate data or statistics.
Cohen, A. M., Brawer, F. B., & Kisker, C. B. (2014). The American community college (6th ed.). Jossey-Bass.
This book presents a detailed review of community college training in the United States, focusing on recent changes impacting two-year schools. The book has a total of 13 chapters. The chapters have detailed information on the American Community college. The first chapter analyzes the socioeconomic dynamics that influenced the formation and extension of community colleges and the complexities associated with institutional goals. The second chapter looks at the changing patterns of student traits and aims, the explanations for the prevalence of part-time enrollment, involvement and accomplishment among a few students, dropout difficulties, and current movements toward student evaluation. The next chapters give detailed information concerning American Community College. I found the book interesting as it addresses most of the issues I want to address on the topic.
Community College Research Center. (2013c). Student success courses for sustained impact. https://ccrc.tc.columbia.edu/media/k2/attachments/student-success-courses-for-sustained-impact.pdf
This article was written by Community College Research Center. The goal of the article was to explore student success courses for sustained impact. The institution has addressed several topics concerning student success in the journal, including current research on student success, benefits of student success, factors inhibiting course implementation, and methods of designing success. This college has published numerous articles and journals. One of the key unique features of this journal is that it has integrated numerous information and presentations concerning student success courses, which makes the source credible. Information from the journal will help me define what a student requires to cross the threshold of their dream in college.
Dalporto, H., & Tessler, B. (2020, April). Voices from the Field: How Community Colleges Are Advancing Equity in Career and Technical Education. ERIC Institute of Education Sciences. Retrieved September 1, 2022, from https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED604541.pdf
Dalporto is an operations specialist and qualitative researcher and supports education projects. She has been involved in the writing of several publications and academic research. In addition, she leads a team of researchers in conducting research related to students and career studies in colleges. On the other side, Betsy L. Tessler has worked for over 20 years in implementation research and operations. The two have combined in wring this article which makes the article credible for scholarly work. In their study, the authors found that CTE programs in community colleges are increasing in number, achieving more equity goals. Colleges should be able to encourage fair and diversified participation in CTE programs by changing their approach and using novel acquisition techniques, such as using peer recruits and community partners. They also found that postgraduate support services, which are becoming more common in the economy, may assist minority students in remaining in the job market and increasing their wages, eliminating pay gaps.
Gordon, V. N. (2006). Career advising: An academic advisor’s guide. Jossey-Bass.
Tin this book, Gordon (2006) talks about career advising. According to Gordon (2006), many students have been entering the workplace differently from the previous situation. Globalization, organizational structure, and technology change have been major student challenges. Gordon is an author who has been involved in writing several books. The book has received scholarly recognition from other authors. Statistics from google scholar show that the book has been cited 161 times. This proves the book is reliable and trusted for use. The author has addressed career information, development theory, and career advisory strategies. This information is required in my study to address what students require to cross the threshold of a Dream Deferred.
Kachur, T. A., & Barcinas, S. J. (2021). Community College Adult Learner Experiences with a Student Success Environment. ERIC Institute of Education Science. Retrieved September 1, 2022, from https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED611595.pdf
Kachur and Barcinas (2021) in this article presented the results of a qualitative research study on how learners perceive a college student’s achievements environment at a community college. The research findings indicated a gap in how community college personnel and learners view and characterize academic achievement and that organizational success frameworks may offer challenges to meeting the particular requirements of learners. The article contains rich information that can be applied in my research on “Community College Access: Crossing the threshold of a Dream Deferred.” One of the critical aspects required is the concept of learner experiences explained in the research. The study uses an instrumental study design. This design helps the researcher have a better understanding of the participants. The detailed findings and data in this article make it a credible study source.
Klempin, S. C., & Lahr, H. (2021). How guided pathways reforms can improve support for adult students: Lessons from three Tennessee community colleges. Columbia University, Teachers College, Community College Research Center.
Klempin and Lahr (2021) reveal that community college-guided pathways reforms are being investigated as a tool for increasing academic achievement and eliminating equity disparities. Still, very little is recognized regarding how the guided pathways methodology might assist solve issues faced by older students. The tactics used by 3 Tennessee community colleges that have adopted guided pathways reforms are discussed in this paper. The writers also address the schools’ efforts to increase their assistance for older students. The research is based on discussions with teachers, academic support personnel, administrative personnel from the three institutions, and focus groups with older students. This article is credible since it cites information from credible sources and each source is properly referenced. This discussion will be used to formulate strategies affecting Crossing the threshold of a Dream Deferred.
Lahey, J. (2014, January 21). Students should be tested more, not less. The Atlantic. https://www.theatlantic.com/education/archive/2014/01/students-should-be-tested-morenot-less/283195/
Lahey (2014) in her journal, she argues that it is important for the student to be tested much more. According to Lahey (2014), testing is detrimental to teacher and student morale and obstructs constructive, meaningful instruction possibilities. This ubiquitous dictum is now accepted as accurate without evidence. Objection to testing, as well as all of its related evils, has resulted in an oversimplification of the term “test” and undeserved notoriety as the personification of everything that is bad within the education curriculum. This journal article is credible since it cites information from various peer reviewed journal articles and these articles have been properly acknowledged in the reference list. This article will help highlight various factors that may affect student success.
Mann Levesque, Elizabeth. (2018). “Improving Community College Completion Rates by Addressing Structural and Motivational Barriers.” Brookings Institution. Website: https://www.brookings.edu/research/community-college-completion-rates-structural-and-motivational-barriers/
Levesque (2018) examines means of improving completion rates of community college by addressing the motivational and structural factors. According to the author, Community colleges can now supply sustainable paths into well-paying careers for students all around the United States. Nevertheless, many individuals from the United States who enroll in community college don’t really earn a degree or a certificate. In particular, less than 40% of community college students complete a degree or certificate within six years of attendance (Elizabeth, 2018). This article is credible since the author is a renowned journalist whose works have been cited by various scholars in their research work. The analyses and further details in this research would help me develop strategies necessary for enhancing student learning in colleges.
Psychology Disorders Paper
Psychology Disorders Paper
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Psychology Disorders Paper
Biographical sketch
According to research on Body Dysmorphic Disorder, Marissa Malik is a female aged 21 from Los Angeles, California. At 15 years, Marissa started showing odd behaviors like spending more time looking at herself in the mirror because she felt fretted about her appearance. Marissa also has unnecessary worry about her face and shows extreme signs of distress and discomfort when someone looks at her straight in her face; thus always ends up covering herself with scarves soles to cover up her face. When Marissa goes out for any function, she spends most of her time choosing clothes, applying make-up, and combing her hair to conceal the flaw in her face and the whole body. Marissa 21-year-old lady, moves from Los Angeles, California, to work in a re-known city Motel as a full-time server in New York. After leaving Los Angeles, she starts feeling lonely and isolated resulting in subsequent mood drops since she has not made new friends in New York City at her place of work. Lately, Marissa has had no joy in the activities she could find entertaining.
This type of fear, anxiety, and distress (Body Dysmorphic Disorder) resulted when she was age 15 and also from her childhood abuse. At Marissa’s workplace, her manager has been continuously dissatisfied with her work performance since she reports almost thirty minutes late and has no reasonable excuse for being late. The motel customers are constantly unhappy with Marissa’s anxiety and distress signs that she shows up when she is serving them daily. Marissa always reports being late for work since she spends more time looking for the best clothing. She also avoids eye contact with people on the way; when walking from home to the workplace, Marissa checks if people around her are looking at her, and if she finds it, so she keeps on covering herself with scarves soles every time. Taking more time to cover her flaws while walking, doing the make-up on her face, and combining her hair makes her waste a lot of time hence, Marissa delays her work.
Trauma or childhood abuse is preliminary evidence of Marissa’s fear, distress, and anxiety; according to the research, Marissa was abused physically and emotionally during her childhood. In her youth, Marissa was maltreated and bullied because of her physical appearance (face appearance) hence experiencing traumatic and emotional conflict during her childhood resulting in low self-esteem. Another reason for the disorder is being predisposed to Body Dysmorphic Disorder during her childhood; being bullied, she developed this disorder that affects her by making her report for work late.
Treatment plan
An effective treatment plan for Body Dysmorphic Disorder is a combination of medication and psychotherapy treatment that are therapeutic approaches (Bernstein et al., 2021, p. 7). The treatment plan assists Marissa in controlling her anxiety, distress, and fear that they do not rule her life. Application of a psychotherapy treatment plan is the type of person’s counseling that concentrates on changing Marissa’s thinking that involves cognitive therapy and her behaviors that is behavioral therapy since she is disturbed by body dysmorphic disorder (Bernstein et al., 2021, p. 4). Cognitive behavioral therapy is more accurate in planning for a psychotherapy program. It is a type of psychotherapy that efficiently treats individuals suffering from body dysmorphic disorder like Marissa. In medication, a therapist administers antidepressants known as selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors or combines selective serotonin with antipsychotic medicines like pimozide, olanzapine, or aripiprazole. Considering medication for Marissa, this type of treatment shows a promising way of treating Marissa’s body dysmorphic disorders, like taking too much, looking at herself in the mirror, and covering herself with scarves.
The aim of applying a psychotherapy treatment plan to Marissa is to correct her false beliefs about her defect (Bernstein et al., 2021, p. 6), minimizing her compulsive behavior. Cognitive behavioral therapy, response, and exposure prevention apply real-life situations and thoughts of n individual. Therefore, they will help Marissa prove that her views about herself are incorrect, changing from viewing herself as someone with body dysmorphic disorder to an average person like others. When the medication process, psychotherapy process, response, and exposure methods are combined in a treatment plan for Marissa, she will be relieved from the dysmorphic disorders that she suffers from, making her report early to work. The whole treatment plan takes approximately two-to-three months. Once Marissa’s dysmorphic symptoms are brought under control, she will be able to control her life hence changing her thought patterns.
Research
Diagnosis
Body dysmorphic disorder is a mental associated health condition where an individual spends most of their time worrying about her appearance flaws that often no one can notice that are intrusive and causes distress and anxiety (Greenberg et al., 2019, p. 181). The diagnosis of Marissa’s body dysmorphic disorder shows that she is strongly controlled and affected by her dysmorphic conditions. Marissa is diagnosed with body dysmorphic disorder concerning her body fretting appearance when someone looks at her face. Marissa started showing such signs at age 15, and this type of anxiety makes her report late for work. He looks at herself in a mirror to ensure that no one will notice her fretted facial appearance; she keeps covering herself with scarves and combing her hair for security reasons of no one noticing the fretted face appearance.
Current Research Surrounding Body Dysmorphic Disorder
The current survey shows that approximately 20% of personnel with body dysmorphic disorder are essentially diagnosed with the condition (Schulte et al., 2020, p. 8). The victims commonly report that their main concern is that they may be self-conceited when they disclose that they are worried by their appearance thoughts. Since it is the opposite of vanity, individuals suffering from body dysmorphic disorder are desperate to appear normal. They are concerned with something wrong with how they look, making them not admire their appearance. Body dysmorphic disorder is challenging to separate from some psychiatric disorders sharing the same characteristics as eating disorders, obsessive-compulsive disorder, depression, and social anxiety (Krebs, Fernández de la Cruz & Mataix-Cols, 2017, p. 73). An example, body dysmorphic disorder, and eating disorders are associated with body image disturbance. Moreover, in body dysmorphic conditions, appearance anxieties are not routinely associated with dysfunctional eating patterns. They are more diverse, while in eating disorders, body dissatisfaction is concentrated on body shape and weight (Hrabosky et al., 2009, p. 159).
Body dysmorphic disorder clinical research on teenagers indicates that up to 60% of current self-harm behaviors or reports past 50% substance abuse, and about a third drops out of school entirely because of their appearance worries (Mataix-Cols et al., 2015, p. 902). The survey found that body dysmorphic disorder is always ignored among teenagers because appearance concerns are disregarded as a prescriptive adolescent stage. While many adolescents worry about appearance, body dysmorphic disorder is not a worry; instead, it is an impairing concern causing marked interference and distress. Because body dysmorphic disorder characteristically appears during puberty, it is, therefore, vital that this state is known and detected early to prevent possible devasting effects that it can possess at this critical developmental stage (Bjornsson et al., 2013, p. 897).
When a teenager has body dysmorphic disorder and gets the appropriate diagnosis, according to the 2005 National Institute for care and health Excellence, the society published the procedures for body dysmorphic disorder management (NICE, 2006). Based on the existing evidence laid by clinical experts, medication and cognitive behavioral therapy, mainly selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, are recommended as the first treatment option for body dysmorphic disorder. Moreover, when the researchers wrote the procedures for treating body dysmorphic conditions at the initial stages, evidence-based for treating teenagers was an issue. Only a few reports had been printed on cognitive behavioral therapy for body dysmorphic disorder in young people. Around 2015, the first researcher published the first randomized control trial of cognitive behavioral therapy to treat body dysmorphic conditions in teenagers (Mataix-Cols et al., 2015, p.898). The survey research finds that cognitive behavioral therapy is an effective and viable treatment option for teenagers with body dysmorphic disorder as it improves the life quality and mood of the individual, together with reducing body dysmorphic disorder symptoms.
Best types of treatment
Therapeutic is appropriate for an individual with body dysmorphic disorder, such as Marissa’s condition. In the treatment process, the therapy progress comprises stages such as exploration, orientation, resolution, and disorder identification. Therefore, Marissa’s case is the same because the distress, fear, and anxiety associated with body dysmorphic disorder are identified and explored further by the research conducted. After that, exploration of the cause of pain, fear, and anxiety, resolution for Marissa’s treatment by providing psychotherapy treatment as a better body dysmorphic disorder choice.
Prognosis
Body dysmorphic disorder in Marissa is treatable because it has not reached its chronic stages. Employing medication and psychotherapy (cognitive behavioral therapy) with a response and exposure therapeutic approach assists Marissa in facing her dysmorphic thoughts and fears without combining them with her compulsions. The medication type introduces antidepressant medicine that helps in altering the chemical balance in Marissa’s brain, thus assisting her in recovering from the body dysmorphic disorder noted in her through the diagnosis process. Hence, her better performance is guaranteed at her workstation.
Personal Reflection
I was writing my research concerning body dysmorphic disorder results from an observation I made on an individual with the same illness. Initially, as I stated in the research project that I carried out, the research was based on research carried out by interviewing an individual with body dysmorphic disorder. I have observed various individuals affected by this type of disorder. I got the urge to interview my patient because I wanted extra compassion for clients suffering from mental illnesses. The other reason I opted to interview my client is that I wanted to get a primary source for the research. Therefore, I conducted research to base my presentation character on her since it was easier than coming up with my biographical sketch.
One friend of mine told me about her body dysmorphic disorder when we worked in an office together three years ago. On coming in touch with my client, I decided to interview her to have more compassion for people living with a mental- disorder-associated illness like Marissa. While interviewing Marissa, I got blown away by how she was open to me, and due to this, I found that I am more grateful for the amount of trust and comfort she showed in being available to me and sharing her mental illness. As a result of her sharing her disorder with me, I found that her self-disclosure illustrates a lot of trusts though it was not much earthshaking.
References
Bernstein, E. E., Phillips, K. A., Greenberg, J. L., Curtiss, J., Hoeppner, S. S., & Wilhelm, S. (2021). Mechanisms of cognitive-behavioural therapy effects on symptoms of body dysmorphic disorder: a network intervention analysis. Psychological Medicine, 1-9. https://www.cambridge.doi.org/core/journals.
Bjornsson, A. S., Didie, E. R., Grant, J. E., Menard, W., Stalker, E., & Phillips, K. A. (2013). Age at onset and clinical correlates in body dysmorphic disorder. Comprehensive Psychiatry, 54(7), 893-903. https://pubmed.doi.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23643073.
Greenberg, J. L., Weingarden, H., & Wilhelm, S. (2019). A practical guide to managing body dysmorphic disorder in the cosmetic surgery setting. JAMA facial plastic surgery, 21(3), 181-182. https://pubmed.ncbi.doi.nlm.nih.gov/30676626.
Hrabosky, J. I., Cash, T. F., Veale, D., Neziroglu, F., Soll, E. A., Garner, D. M., … & Phillips, K. A. (2009). Multidimensional body image comparisons among patients with eating disorders, body dysmorphic disorder, and clinical controls: a multisite study. Body image, 6(3), 155-163. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.doi.nih.gov/19410528.
Krebs, G., de la Cruz, L. F., & Mataix-Cols, D. (2017). Recent advances in understanding and managing body dysmorphic disorder. Evidence-Based Mental Health, 20(3), 71-75. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.doi.gov/28729345.
Mataix-Cols, D., de la Cruz, L. F., Isomura, K., Anson, M., Turner, C., Monzani, B., & Krebs, G. (2015). A pilot randomized controlled trial of cognitive-behavioural therapy for adolescents with body dysmorphic disorder. Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, 54(11), 895-904. https://pubmed.doi.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26506580.
National Collaborating Centre for Mental Health (UK. (2006). Obsessive-compulsive disorder: core interventions in treating obsessive-compulsive disorder and body dysmorphic disorder. https://pubmed.doi.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21834191.
Schulte, J., Schulz, C., Wilhelm, S., & Buhlmann, U. (2020). Treatment utilization and treatment barriers in individuals with body dysmorphic disorder. BMC Psychiatry, 20(1), 1-11. https://pubmed.doi.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32070300.