The Case Study of Elvis Presley Kelly Cobban University of Phoenix The Case Study of Elvis Presley Elvis Aaron Presley was a wildly known performer from the 19th century. With this fame comes the public display of every aspect of his personal life, the good as well as the bad. Anyone who has knowledge of Mr. Presley also knows that he died of a drug overdose while sitting on the toilet of his bathroom in Graceland but what many do not know is the discrepancy behind the details of exactly why. Substance abuse covers a wide range of substances.
Any brain-affecting substance is classified as a drug and this includes caffeine and nicotine on top of alcohol (Hansell & Damour, 2008). Due to this the DSM IV-TR classifies substance abuse as substance related disorders. Mr. Presley died of such a disorder. Elvis Presley Elvis Presley is viewed by many to be the “King of Rock and Roll” and his charisma and music left an impression on music forever (Meyer, Chapman, & Weaver, 2009). Through the fame he acquired he also brought his personal life into the spotlight as well.
He was very attached with his mother who died from hepatitis and had a drinking problem herself and bouts of depression with fits of anger separating them (Meyer, Chapman, & Weaver, 2009). His relationship with his father was strained because of the jail term he served when he was just a child (Meyer, Chapman, & Weaver, 2009). Many count the separation and finally divorce from his wife, Priscilla Beaulieu, as his downfall because he simply gave upon life and his behavior took a turn for the worse.
He began more dangerous behavior of sleeping around, his sleep schedule was reversed so that he would sleep during the day and party all night, and he began to use drugs heavily (Meyer, Chapman, & Weaver, 2009). Many knew of his substance abuse problem due to the fact that he would show up to concerts drunk and break out into laughing fits or cancel shows altogether due to drug use (Meyer, Chapman, & Weaver, 2009). His behavior fluctuated from highly irrational to depressed (Meyer, Chapman, & Weaver, 2009).
He also displayed abnormal behavior through spending money without regard to anything or anyone and then donating the purchases right after (Meyer, Chapman, & Weaver, 2009). During the last three years of his life he was prescribed over 19,000 doses of various prescription medications, such as codeine, morphine, Valium, Quaaludes, and Demerol and his reason for these drugs was tooth problems (Meyer, Chapman, & Weaver, 2009). The discrepancy as to the cause of death comes from various physicians.
The coroner that performed the autopsy ruled the cause of death as cardiac arrhythmia and stated the amounts of drug within his body were too low to state drug overdose as the cause (Meyer, Chapman, & Weaver, 2009). However the toxicology report states that he died from polypharmacy or the use of too medications by a single patient and many use this to dispute the initial cause of death (Meyer, Chapman, & Weaver, 2009). Whatever the reason as to the cause of death drugs played a vital role in the event.
DSM IV-TR The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM IV-TR) is the manual used by those in the field to diagnose mental disorders among the population. The last major revision was done back in 1994 and since the next copy, DSM-V, is not set to appear until 2012 a text revision was done in 2000 to give us the current reference of DSM IV-TR (APA, 2010). It is within this reference that the definitions are given to diagnose an individual with substance abuse.
Due to the fact that there is no black and white definition of such disorders this manual gives the foundation for what needs to be present to give an accurate diagnosis. Substance Abuse Drug abuse or what are otherwise known as substance related disorders in the DSM IV-TR, is a major problem among the population of the United States of America (Hansell & Damour, 2008). To classify major, at least one quarter of the population will, at some point in their lifetime, meet the criteria for substance abuse disorders which makes substance misuse the most common of all mental disorders within the DSM IV-TR (Hansell & Damour, 2008).
Everyone within this country will be personally affected by a substance related disorder in their lifetime and with such a staggering topic that places economic and social price in the billions, individuals need to look into ways of providing help to those in need (Hansell & Damour, 2008). The DSM IV-TR has two classifications for diagnoses of substance use. The first, and less severe, is substance abuse and is roughly similar to addiction (Hansell & Damour, 2008). The second is substance dependence and in order to distinguish between the two one must become aware of the three C’s (Hansell & Damour, 2008).
These criteria describe three features of a pathological drug relationship: a pattern of ongoing use of a substance despite experiencing negative consequences, a pattern of compulsive use (that is, significant time and resources are devoted to the substance), and a loss of control over use of the substance, such as using the substance in greater amounts or with greater frequency than intended (Hansell & Damour, 2008, p. 314). Substance abuse consists of the first C whereas substance dependence contains all three (Hansell & Damour, 2008).
Through these criteria one can see why substance related disorders affect so many within this country and have a profound impact on so many others. Conclusion Elvis Presley died at a young age by today’s standards and he also has a mental disorder classified by the DSM IV-TR as a substance abuse disorder. The DSM IV-TR is the reference manual that is currently in place to assist those in the psychology field to place diagnoses on individuals. According to this text, substance related disorders are classified as the most common of all mental disorders out there.
In order to determine which level of substance use the individual has one must beware of the three C’s. Mr. Presley had the second and most severe of the two levels: substance dependence. Due to this dependency it cost him his life. References American Psychological Assiciation, 2010. DSM IV-TR the current manual. Retrieved May 16, 2010 from http://www. psych. org/mainmenu/research/dsmiv/dsmivtr. aspx Hansell, J. & Damour, L. (2008). Abnormal psychology (2nd ed. ). Hoboken, NJ: Wiley. Meyer, R. , Chapman, L. K. , & Weaver, C. M. (2009). Case studies in abnormal behavior. (8th ed). Boston: Pearson/Allyn & Bacon
