The Relationship Between Stress and Bob’s Disorder in What About Bob?
The character Bob of the movie What About Bob? suffers from all the existing complexes and phobias. The hero is overwhelmed by numerous fears; he is sweet, naive, and obsessive, but more than one psychoanalyst refuses him. Bob fears dirt, infection, polluted air, water, heights, cars and airplanes, and open and closed spaces (Oz, 1991). It seems to him that he is sick with all the diseases in the world.
However, Bob believes that kind people will undoubtedly help, and everyone around is friendly. He cannot stand being alone, so he tries to be close to someone who is not so scary to live with to reduce stress levels and demand attention to himself. Since Bob has been stressed for a long time, he has developed chronic anxiety, which, despite pronounced acute symptoms, is still subject to treatment.
Bob’s anxiety is expressed as an emotional experience characterized by discomfort from the uncertainty of the perspective and having a specific biological meaning. The source of anxiety for the character is information about the threat to life, health, and well-being that Bob sees in his environment. The stimulus is repeatedly acting strong – in this case, the hero gets a chronic mental trauma. The significance of information for this particular individual determines the degree of its pathogenicity (Mayo Foundation, 2016).
These factors make Bob vulnerable to psychoemotional stress, complicate psychological and biological protection, facilitate the occurrence and aggravate the course of somatic disorders, and contribute to the formation of psychosomatic disorders. Thus, Bob’s stress, which he receives as a result of contact with the environment, is displayed by the character chosen in the form of anxiety, stress, and phobia disorder.
Irrational & Abnormal Beliefs, Attitudes, and Behaviors
Bob’s irrational and abnormal beliefs, attitudes, and behaviors are pretty diverse and have many manifestations. The character has multiple oddities and phobias, from periodic intense outbreaks of Turret syndrome and terrible claustrophobia to autophobia and demophobia. Nervous Bob Wiley also suffers from a syndrome of exceptional purity and a phobia of diseases.
As a result, he, for example, feels everything around exclusively through a rag and is afraid to move from one place to another (Oz, 1991). He is afraid to touch the handles of doors and cars with his hands, so he opens them holding a handkerchief. Bob’s chemophobia manifests itself, for example, in the fact that he is afraid to ride the bus and Tourette’s syndrome – in the fact that the patient involuntarily shouts out non-cultural words. Bob is claustrophobic, so he refuses to use the elevator.
In addition, the fear of loneliness makes the hero check excessive attachment to people. This is shown in the episode where Dr. Leo Marvin goes on vacation with the whole family for a month. Bob is so scared by this news and suffers from loneliness that with the dexterity of a fraudster, he finds out where Leo Marvin has gone (Oz, 1991). Unexpectedly, Bob turns out to be a very cunning and quick-witted paranoid, tricking him into taking out his phone and then the address of his doctor. Bob pursues Dr. Marvin and does not understand the hints and even direct speech, so he leaves the doctor alone on a family vacation. All of these manifestations of Bob’s nervous illness interfere with his daily life.
Possible Diagnosis
One can supply Bob with several possible diagnoses using the current DSM and ICD diagnostic codes. Since Bob is afraid to part with Dr. Marvin, he has a separation anxiety disorder: DSM 309.210 and ICD F930 (AAPP, n. d.). Anxiety disorder due to the fear of separation from a dear person can occur not only in children but also in adults. Anxiety, in this case, is accompanied by tension, nervousness, anxiety, rapid heartbeat, and breathing (Wide & Hakeberg, 2021). It can provoke insomnia, panic attacks, and obsessions, such as trains following Dr. Marvin on a family vacation.
Bob’s fear of separation may be related to trauma, a problematic situation, depression, or other disorders. In addition, Bob’s involuntary shouting of swear words allows us to conclude that he suffers from Tourette’s Syndrome: DSM 5 307.23 and F95.2. A characteristic sign of the disease is vocal tics – repetition of sounds and syllables, words, or phrases (AAPP, n. d.). Separately, two characteristic types of vocal tics are noted, which is observed in Bob. He has coprolalia – uttering obscene words and expressions.
In addition, the character has a large number of specific phobias. The DSM 300.29 and ICD F40.248 codes define Bob’s situational phobia as a fear of enclosed elevators and unfamiliar spaces (AAPP, n. d.). He has many definitions of phobia, but the main one is their characterization as a phenomenon of irrational, uncontrolled, and often unreasonable fear (Rajoria et al., 2022). In addition, a steady state of constant anxiety is emphasized in certain circumstances or the expectation of their occurrence, especially in situations with an unknown ending or object. In general, these diagnoses together negatively affect Bob’s psychological state, leading to anxiety disorder.
Psychological Model
The psychological model that best explains the cause of Bob’s symptoms and behaviors is cognitive. According to modern ideas, anxiety is more than just an emotional state (Mayo Foundation, 2016). Additionally, it has cognitive and motivational elements that help shape particular behavior types.
In this situation, we can use a cognitive model of anxiety, which also considers certain cognitive attitudes, expectations, worldviews, and emotional experiences. Bob’s worry results from his anticipation of failing in social situations and is frequently brought on by his ignorance of the danger’s origin. (Mayo Foundation, 2016). His expectation of failure forms the behavior of a passive-defensive, avoidant type.
Intense anxiety characterizes states of the neurotic level. It is common for patients with anxiety neurosis to fear loss of control, which leads to feelings of humiliation, embarrassment, and sadness. For this reason, Bob fears loss of control over his own body and getting sick (Oz, 1991). These fears seem well-founded to Bob, whose thoughts revolve around danger and who cannot sensibly and objectively evaluate frightening thoughts. Generalization of anxiety-inducing stimuli leads to the fact that almost any stimulus or situation can be perceived as threatening. Bob focuses on the concept of danger and its accompanying stimuli. The danger is greatly exaggerated; there is a tendency to perceive events as catastrophic, and imaginary dangers are equated with real ones. Thus, the themes of danger dominate the thinking of the anxious patient; that is, he assumes events will be detrimental to him. Thus, using a cognitive model best explains Bob’s symptoms and beliefs.
Possible Treatment Plan
Similar to how other psychological diseases are corrected, psychotherapy techniques are primarily used to treat anxiety. Very rarely are medications utilized; instead, following the first session with the therapist, patients typically experience some degree of alleviation, which is shown by the example of Bob. However, the use of beta-blockers relieves vegetative symptoms; tranquilizers can eliminate anxiety and muscle tension and normalize sleep. Since the patient has been diagnosed with a mixed disorder with a large number of phobias, it is possible to take antidepressants (Mayo Foundation, 2016). Treatment with all these drugs should take place under the supervision of Dr. Marvin and only on his recommendation.
Based on the cognitive model, The most effective psychotherapeutic approach for treating a variety of anxiety problems is cognitive behavioral therapy. Its primary tenet is the belief that one’s thoughts impact one’s psychological state, behavior, and physical health. While working with Beans, Dr. Marvin should identify irrational thoughts, point them out, and correct the patient’s consciousness (Mayo Foundation, 2016). Therapy should be structured so that Bob himself will come to the correct conclusions under the guidance of a doctor.
After finishing the psychotherapy program, Bob will learn how to manage his concerns as well as how to withstand them in the future. Without consulting a doctor, it can be pretty challenging to overcome significant forms of anxiety problems. Therefore, Bob did the right thing by postponing a visit to a therapist when he noticed signs of a severe psychological disorder.
References
AAPP. (n.d.). Movies in the classroom: What about Bob. Web.
Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research. (2016). Specific phobias. Mayo Clinic. Web.
Oz, F. (Director). (1991). What about Bob? [Film]. Touchstone Pictures.
Rajoria, Y., Alsaraireh, I., & Boadh, R. (2022). The initial investigation of mathematical anxiety & phobia: It’s solution in middle school students. Journal of Positive School Psychology, 6(6), 8323-8328. Web.
Wide, U., & Hakeberg, M. (2021). Treatment of dental anxiety and phobia: Diagnostic criteria and conceptual model of behavioral treatment. Journal of Dentistry, 9(12), 153. Web.