Miss K Is a Thirty-Two Year Old Woman. She Has Come to Therapy to Help Her Quit Smoking. She Smokes Approximately Twenty-Five Cigarettes a Day and Has Smoked for the Last Seventeen Years.

Abstract

Miss K is a thirty-two year old woman. She has come to therapy to help her quit smoking. She smokes approximately twenty-five cigarettes a day and has smoked for the last seventeen years.

Introduction and initial consultation

Miss K came to therapy to quit smoking but her main reason was not the cost of smoking however saving money would be an added bonus. Miss K's father died from a heart attack. This was very traumatic for Miss K as she was the one to find his body. Her mother also recently had a health scare concerning her heart. They both smoked very heavily throughout their lives. As a result of this the main reason for Miss K wanting to quit smoking is her health. We completed a notation form in order to ensure that there were no ethical issues or contra-indications that mean that I am unable to treat Miss K. In this case Miss K has a family history of heart disease therefore I would feel more confident in treating her if I had permission from her GP. I do not feel that this therapy is a risk to Miss K however as I am still in training, I would feel far more confident having this permission. However she has no heart condition, nor is she taking medication so it is healthy and ethical for me to treat her. If I had any doubt about what Miss K was telling me I would have asked her written consent from her doctor, however I did not feel this was necessary. Miss k has no children but plans to have some in the future. She is worried that if she has children she may not be around to watch them grow up. Her husband does not smoke and he does not like the fact that his wife does. I have made sure that she is not quitting for his benefit as this is not an effective motivation for quitting. In Miss K's initial consultation we discussed what I was able to offer her. I explained that I was able to help her but the main work lies with her. I also made sure that she had come to therapy for her own reasons and that without will power the therapy will not be effective. We also filled in a notation form, in this form I asked her about her reasons for seeking therapy, occupation, medical history, any medication being taken, amongst other things. This information is important to ensure that there is no medical or ethical reason to not treat the client. I then found out what modality Miss K is, she is visual. I found this out by reading Miss K a passage out of the blue booklet from module two, about making a speech at a wedding. It is described in three different ways, visual, auditory and kinaesthetic. Each paragraph focuses on a different modality. After reading this to Miss K I asked her which paragraph she felt best described how she feels. This helps me to understand what kind of screed to use for Miss K, as each person responds differently to different modalities. As Miss K is visual it means that she imagines things in pictures. When remembering things she sees them as pictures instead of remembering the sound of things or how they had felt.

Diagnosis

Miss K smokes approximately twenty-five cigarettes a day. I asked her when she smokes the most, she said in the morning after she gets up out of bed before she goes to work. She also smokes more when she is feeling stressed, mostly at work. As the day goes on, late afternoon and evenings, she tends to smoke less. I feel that I have the skills needed to treat Miss K. I cannot offer her any advice on her health as I am not qualified for this. I can, however, help her to stop smoking which will improve her health and possible reduce the risk of heart problems in the future. Miss K has smoked for a very long time, (nearly half her life time) therefore a lot of her habit is routine, she is aware of this and the fact that she will have to change and adapt parts of her routine if she is to become a permanent non smoker.

Treatment plan

This therapy was only a one off session as this is all that is needed for the treatment needed for this type of problem. It lasted for ninety minutes. The first thirty minutes consisted of myself and Miss K discussing the treatment that she was about to receive and me filling in her notation form.