Psychiatric Medications Q 48
Ramon is admitted for detoxification after a cocaine overdose. The client tells the nurse that he frequently uses cocaine but that he can control his use if he chooses. Which coping mechanism is he using?
A. Withdrawal
B. Logical thinking
C. Repression
D. Denial
Correct Answer: D. Denial
Denial is an unconscious defense mechanism in which emotional conflict and anxiety is avoided by refusing to acknowledge feelings, desires, impulses, or external facts that are consciously intolerable. Denial is a defense mechanism proposed by Anna Freud which involves a refusal to accept reality, thus blocking external events from awareness. If a situation is just too much to handle, the person may respond by refusing to perceive it or by denying that it exists.
Option A: Withdrawal is a common response to stress, characterized by apathy. Withdrawal is the combination of physical and mental effects that a person experiences after they stop using or reduce their intake of a substance such as alcohol and prescription or recreational drugs. The intensity and duration of these withdrawal symptoms can vary widely, depending on the type of drug and your biological make-up.
Option B: Logical thinking is the ability to think rationally and make responsible decisions, which would lead the client to admit the problem and to seek help. Logical thinking is the act of analyzing a situation and coming up with a sensible solution. Similar to critical thinking, logical thinking requires the use of reasoning skills to study a problem objectively, which will allow you to make a rational conclusion about how to proceed.
Option C: Repression is suppressing past events from the consciousness because of guilty association. Repression is an unconscious defense mechanism employed by the ego to keep disturbing or threatening thoughts from becoming conscious. Thoughts that are often repressed are those that would result in feelings of guilt from the superego. This is not a very successful defense in the long term since it involves forcing disturbing wishes, ideas, or memories into the unconscious, where, although hidden, they will create anxiety. Repressed memories may appear through subconscious means and in altered forms, such as dreams or slips of the tongue (‘Freudian slips’).