Kiara Smith's Depression Case Studies

Kiara Smith is a sixteen-year-old female. She is African American and Asian, her father is African American and her mother is Asian. Her mother passed away when she was eight. Her father is currently raising her. Kiara’s father works two jobs to ensure that she receives the best education. She currently attends a private school. Kiara has many friends that she spends time with when her father is working. She believes in God but does not partake in going to church. She does not know her mother’s family and her father’s family lives far away. Other than her friends, she spends time with Ms. Sheppard, an older woman who lives in her building. Kiara has stated that she is dealing with depression and an addiction to prescription drugs. …show more content…
The counselor stated that the goal was to get Kiara on medication to help ease her depression; however, Kiara feels that the medication just made her sadder. She stops taking the medication and refuses to take another medication for her depression. Kiara has stated that when she is taking the pills that she steals or gets from her friends she feels better than she ever did taking the several different depression medications. She has stated that if she is going to receive medication for her problem than she should be able to …show more content…
Two areas that need to be the overall focus are Kiara’s trust and abandonment issues. Since her desire to have, a better relationship with her father we would need to look into those issues and try to get her father to be a part of some of the sessions. Upon completion of Kiara and her social worker, Ms. Turner, work together, Kiara is hoping that she will have a better relationship with her father. She is also hoping that she will be able to deal with her depression without depending on self-medicating. Kiara and her social worker, Ms. Turner are both hoping that these sessions will help to break down some of the clients walls and make her more open to forming long lasting relationships. Ms. Turner is hoping that Kiara sticks to the treatment plan and if things get hard, that she will be able to tell Ms. Turner about what is making it difficult for her. Kiara and Ms. Turner have come up with three goals that will be beneficial to her. The first goal is for Kiara to abstain for using prescription medications while she is in therapy. The second goal is for Kiara to use effective coping mechanisms. The third goal is for Kiara to create a better relationship with her father.
Goals and