Social Anxiety Disorder Case Study
Giovanna Eynaudi
According to diagnostic criteria provided in the DSM-5, Mr. Fife should be diagnosed with social anxiety disorder.
As mentioned in the DSM-5 diagnostic criteria for social anxiety, an individual should experience clear fear or anxiety about one or more social situations in which he or she is being observed and possibly analyzed by others (Criterion A). For instance, Mr. Fife’s information, he meets criterion A as he mentions how social situations such as speaking to strangers or interacting with others generate clear signs of fear and anxiety. He mentions how he feels several physical and cognitive symptoms characteristics of extreme fear and anxiety when he is with people, such as having a “buzzing” in his head, or feeling like being “outside of his body” (i.e. depersonalization), having “hot flashes” and “perspiring”. Based on this, and considering the severity of Mr. Fife’s symptoms, he also meets criterion C, as these social situations always provoke fear and anxiety symptoms. If Mr. Fife had become anxious only occasionally in these social situations, he would not meet the diagnostic criteria for social anxiety disorder. However, and based on the information provided in this case, he has …show more content…
For example, systematic desensitization could be implemented as an effective form of exposure therapy to treat Mr. Fife’s fears and anxiety symptoms. In this case, Mr. Fife would be systematically exposed to anxiety-arousing images that would go from the least anxiety-provoking situation to the situation that evokes the most anxiety. During this process, the client should be able to implement deep muscle relaxation techniques which will help him to achieve a very deep and thorough state of relaxation, enabling the progress through the desensitization of the feared social
According to diagnostic criteria provided in the DSM-5, Mr. Fife should be diagnosed with social anxiety disorder.
As mentioned in the DSM-5 diagnostic criteria for social anxiety, an individual should experience clear fear or anxiety about one or more social situations in which he or she is being observed and possibly analyzed by others (Criterion A). For instance, Mr. Fife’s information, he meets criterion A as he mentions how social situations such as speaking to strangers or interacting with others generate clear signs of fear and anxiety. He mentions how he feels several physical and cognitive symptoms characteristics of extreme fear and anxiety when he is with people, such as having a “buzzing” in his head, or feeling like being “outside of his body” (i.e. depersonalization), having “hot flashes” and “perspiring”. Based on this, and considering the severity of Mr. Fife’s symptoms, he also meets criterion C, as these social situations always provoke fear and anxiety symptoms. If Mr. Fife had become anxious only occasionally in these social situations, he would not meet the diagnostic criteria for social anxiety disorder. However, and based on the information provided in this case, he has …show more content…
For example, systematic desensitization could be implemented as an effective form of exposure therapy to treat Mr. Fife’s fears and anxiety symptoms. In this case, Mr. Fife would be systematically exposed to anxiety-arousing images that would go from the least anxiety-provoking situation to the situation that evokes the most anxiety. During this process, the client should be able to implement deep muscle relaxation techniques which will help him to achieve a very deep and thorough state of relaxation, enabling the progress through the desensitization of the feared social