Psychology Giovanni Miller 9/29/13

Lamar Joseph Odom is a 33 year old American professional basketball forward who last played with the Los Angeles Clippers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Lamar was born on November 6, 1979 in South Jamaica, Queens. Odom happens to be having a drug problem and people are trying to help him get out of this. It was noticed when they arrested him on August 30, 2013 for suspicion of driving under the influence. Kardashian Odom tweeted about the reports, saying it was “really hard to sit here and listen to people talk … about my family.”

Lamar Odom didn’t have a relationship with his dad at all. Odom, during the debut episode of his new reality show, 'Khloe and Lamar', reveals that his estranged father, Joe, is a heroin addict. "I'm not asking him to be a father,” Odom says on the show. “I'm asking him to act like you are my father.” In the episode, Joe surprises Khloe Kardashian, Lamar’s wife, at a book signing. Khloe encourages her husband and his father for form a closer relationship, but Joe later asks his son for money. "Give me a couple dollars, man, I'm wiped out," Joe asks of Lamar over the phone, per USA Today. He also asks for groceries, tickets and shoes. After that, Khloe backs off her suggestion that Lamar and Joe reconcile.

Lamar Odom also had a hard time focusing when his son had passed. On June 29, 2006 ESPN news posted that Odom’s 6 and a half month old son Jayden Odom died Wednesday night, apparently suffocating while sleeping in his crib in New York, according to John Black. For a while he carry a bible and he didn’t have his usual smile. "I feel a little lost at times. God is keeping me strong," Odom told reporters. "I've experienced it before my mother, my grandmother," he said. "What keeps me strong is he died on the same day as my grandmother." During this time Odom was struggling so his family came to support him in his time of struggle.

It seems Lamar Odom has reached, assuming the $800 per day crack cocaine reports are true, it is difficult to stop using because pain feels more intense, reality feels more painful, and the high of smoking crack, or injecting heroin, or even of getting blackout drunk, feels like the only cure. Lamar’s past may be catching up with him emotionally in a way that he cannot handle. He is turning to one of the most powerful drugs available in an effort to suppress the memories and to feel good inside, even if it’s fleeting. It has been reported that Lamar went to rehab, which did not keep him clean. Lamar’s drug use appears to be destroying his marriage, his extended family life, and possibly his career.

I believe that Lamar Odom diagnosis is a Cocaine-Induced Disorder. I reached my diagnosis because they say that he spends $800 per day on cocaine. This seems to be code 292.89 anxiety disorder. I say this because it seems that this drug problem happens to be affecting his everyday life like he is trying to get so many things off his mind and so he erases all hi stress by doing cocaine. This may not only ruin his carrier but even ruin his marriage. There’s a chance his wife Khloe doesn’t even know that he’s doing drugs.

I say a cognitive-behavioral therapist is what Lamar Odom needs. Cognitive behavior therapy is a type of psychotherapeutic treatment that helps patients understand the thoughts and feelings that influence behaviors. CBT is commonly used to treat a wide range of disorders including phobias, addiction, depression and anxiety. Cognitive behavior therapy is generally short-term and focused on helping clients deal with a very specific problem. This is exactly the type of therapy Lamar Odom should use for his drug problem or he probably won’t be able to get clean.