Kleptomania Case Study

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You have probably heard of Bipolar disorder, Schizophrenia, PTSD, OSD, and Anxiety disorder, but have you ever heard of Kleptomania? Kleptomania is not a very common disorder that you would hear talked about on a day to day basis, but it is very real and very costly. Kleptomania is failing to resist the urge to steal things that you don’t need and that and that do not have a lot of value (“Diseases and Conditions Kleptomania,” 2014). Kleptomania is a psychological disorder that was discovered in the 1800’s, there is no known discoverer. In the U.S. it is unclear how many people are affected by this disorder, but researchers believe that about 6 out of 1,000 people are affected by it. It is believed that five percent of shoplifting cases may …show more content…

The answer is no, but there are treatments for the individual. There are two options for an individual who is suffering, they can take medication or they can do psychotherapy. The portion of psychotherapy that they would use is cognitive behavioral therapy. Family therapy is also used. According to (“Mayo Clinic”) cognitive behavioral therapy will help to identify unhealthy, and negative behaviors and will help you to gain healthy positive behaviors. In cognitive behaviors, some of the therapy’s they may use are covert sensitization, aversion therapy, and systematic desensitization. The first technique, covert sensitization, is when the patient will be given a scenario of them stealing, getting caught and having to face negative consequences, such as arrest. The second therapy is aversion therapy, which is more painful. When the patient feels the urge or need to steal they will hold their breath it is uncomfortable. The last of the cognitive behavioral therapy’s that are used is the systematic desensitization. In this therapy the patient will perform relaxation techniques and will be told to picture themselves being in control of their urge to steal. Not only do they use therapy, but they also use medication. Some of the popular medications that are used for this disorder are Fluoxetine, Fluvoxamine, Paroxetine, Sertraline (“Psychology Today”). The medication that is used the most is …show more content…

This ailment occurs in less than about 5% of the shoplifting cases. It is more common to find that this disease affects women more than it does males. It affects women who are about the age of 35, but in rare cases, some have reported noticing this behavior in as early as five years old. I read a story about a woman named Hilary; she recounted her story of kleptomania and how it all started. She was a successful middle class woman, with a very good job. She explained her first encounter with the disorder; she began to steal spoons from the café. She said that stealing the spoons soothed her. After this she began to steal more item that she had no need for. She elucidated how she began to feel guilty; she would sit up at night crying and telling herself that she was going to stop. She said that she feared losing her job, upsetting her family and being taken to jail. But when she would wake up the next morning nothing had changed, she still had that same rush to steal meaningless

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