Acquatella Camille Acquatella Mr. Speice Independent Study Mentorship 5 May 2019 Final Product Set-Up and Summary Materials: The final product made was a treatment plan for children with Disruptive Mood Dysregulation Disorder, therefore, one of the main materials used was research sources. I used various case studies as well as research experiments done on DMDD to get most of the information for the treatment plan. The statistics in these sources mainly served as information needed to decide which therapy and medicinal treatments worked best for the symptoms of DMDD. The case and research studies used were from the National Institute of Mental Health and provided reliable data on the demographics, statistics, and results from the studies. The other material used was simply a computer and the Canva website to make the actual treatment plan document. Objective/Purpose: The purpose behind doing a treatment plan on DMDD is that it is a relatively new mental disorder; it was added just recently to the DSM-5 in 2013. It was added as a differential diagnosis for children who displayed symptoms of Bipolar Disorder but grew out of their symptoms as adults as well as lacked the critical symptom of being hypomanic. There had been an increase of 500% in diagnosis in Bipolar Disorder in America in 2011; this was crucial because many children were being given unnecessary medicines that were harmful to their health. Therefore the purpose of this treatment plan is to create awareness about DMDD as well as educate parents an children on how to treat it. Since it is a new diagnosis, there is not much research on about the different treatments for symptoms, therefore, the treatment plan includes therapies, medicines, and parent trainings that can help children with DMDD. Description of Process: The first step taken was doing research about DMDD. I researched the overview of DMDD such as the symptoms, causes, diagnosis, and history. Then I found some research studies and case studies done on patients and used the data to come up with treatments that suited the symptoms best. I researched on therapies that can treat symptoms of irritability and sadness in children and found that Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and Dialectical Behavioral Therapy worked best to treat these conditions in children. I also researched about medicines that were safe to use on children to treat the symptoms of aggressiveness, impulsivity, and sadness. Although not as highly recommended, I found that mild antidepressants can be used on children as well as stimulant medicine that treats ADHD helps with the impulsivity symptom. The last step of research was to find ways parent can intervene and help their children with DMDD. I found that the best trainings for children who struggle with anger and irritability were Parent Child Interaction Training and Parent Management training. These training sessions would educate parents on how to help their child cope with their symptoms and reinforce positive behaviors in them to alleviate the symptoms. The final step was transferring the research done into the format of a treatment plan. I made sure to add colors, diagrams, and organization sections to make it child and parent friendly. Utilization of Higher Level Thinking Skills: I chose to research DMDD because its a new mental disorder and the causes, ways to diagnose, and treatment have not been scientifically proven. Therefore it was a challenge to extrapolate information from research studies and findings to come up with a treatment plan for these children. The research done did not give me clear answers for the causes but I was able to find which children were more at risk for developing DMDD; this information is helpful for parents to be aware of to see if their child is at risk. For the treatment portion, I had to compare the symptoms of DMDD to symptoms of other mental disorders and compare their treatments to find what would work best for DMDD. This required me to research disorders such as Oppositional Defiant Disorder, Major Depressive Disorder, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, and other mood disorders to find a common treatment among them. Then I had to research each medication in detail to analyze the way they affect the brain to see if it could be affective for DMDD. The same process applied for the therapy treatments, I had to base my inferences on the research done of each kind of therapy to come up with the most effective ones in my opinion to add to the treatment plan. Impacts: The treatment plan developed as the Final Product can have major impacts on the field of pediatric psychology. It can create awareness for physicians diagnosing patients with disorders similar to DMDD to consider it as a possibility even though it's a new disorder, the treatment plan provides in depth information that could completely change the outcomes of many diagnosis. For parents, this treatment plan can be used as a guide to the ways they can help their child if diagnosed with DMDD. It provides them with a step by step process from what therapy to use, medications, and trainings to take and how they all help each symptom. Finally, the overall global impact would be to help reduce the number of children being misdiagnosed with Bipolar Disorder. The medicines given to treat Bipolar Disorder have had many negative effects on children such as rapid weight gain, risk in developing type 2 Diabetes, a shortened life span, and stunt in growth and development. Therefore, with this treatment plan, everyone involved in the mental health of a child can be made aware of the risks of being diagnosed with Bipolar Disorder and know the other options there are out there. Application/Meaning: As previously mentioned, the treatment plan can be of use to any person involved in the diagnosis and treatment of a child with mental health disorders. Not only does this treatment plan have small scale impacts on the child's health, but it also can spread awareness for the impacts of misdiagnosis. Misdiagnosis in the medical field is a large issue and can have life threatening impacts on the patient as well as credibility of the physician(s) involved. The meaning of this treatment plan is to spread awareness of this issue, specifically with Bipolar Disorder. COnsidering there was a 500% increase in Bipolar Disorder diagnosis in 2011 means it has become a large scale issue. Therefore, I hope that this treatment plan can educate and guide physicians, parents, and children to the best treatment option for them.