A nurse is reinforcing teaching about colostrum with a new mother who is breastfeeding.
The mother asks, "Why is colostrum so important for my baby?" Which of the following responses should the nurse make?

Choice A rationale:

Encourage the client to have continual bed rest. Rationale: Continual bed rest is not the appropriate intervention for a client experiencing chronic fatigue due to leukemia. Prolonged bed rest can lead to further weakness and deconditioning. Encouraging some level of physical activity, such as gentle exercise, can help improve strength and reduce fatigue.

Choice B rationale:

Encourage strength-training exercise. Rationale: This is the correct intervention for a client with leukemia experiencing chronic fatigue. Strength-training exercises, when appropriate and under the guidance of healthcare professionals, can help improve muscle strength and overall endurance. It can combat the fatigue commonly associated with leukemia and its treatment.

Choice C rationale:

Increase the client's fluids to 4 L per day. Rationale: While adequate hydration is essential, increasing fluids to 4 liters per day may not be appropriate for every client. The optimal fluid intake for a client should be determined based on their individual needs and medical condition. Excessive fluid intake without medical indication can lead to complications like fluid overload.

Choice D rationale:

Increase protein in the diet. Rationale: Increasing protein intake can be beneficial for clients with leukemia as it helps in tissue repair and supports the immune system. However, it should be done in consultation with a registered dietitian to ensure that the client's specific dietary needs are met.

The correct answer is: a. Displacement.

Choice A Reason: Displacement is a defense mechanism where a person redirects a negative emotion from its original source to a less threatening recipient. In the context of bipolar disorder, a client may displace anger or frustration about their condition or treatment onto the nurse, who is not the source of these feelings. This redirection can occur because the client might feel powerless or uncomfortable expressing these emotions towards their healthcare provider, who is the authority figure prescribing medication changes.

Choice B Reason: Splitting is often associated with borderline personality disorder rather than bipolar disorder. It involves viewing things in extremes—either all good or all bad—with no middle ground. While individuals with bipolar disorder can exhibit black-and-white thinking, especially during mood episodes, the behavior described does not indicate splitting, as it does not involve idealizing or devaluing the nurse or provider.

Choice C Reason: Sublimation is a mature defense mechanism where socially unacceptable impulses or idealizations are unconsciously transformed into socially acceptable actions or behavior, often resulting in a long-term conversion of the initial impulse. For example, a person with aggressive tendencies might take up a sport that channels aggression in a socially acceptable way. The scenario provided does not suggest that the client is channeling their frustrations into a constructive activity.

Choice D Reason: Conversion involves the transfer of mental stress into physical symptoms. This defense mechanism is characteristic of conversion disorder, where psychological stress manifests as neurological symptoms like blindness, paralysis, or other sensory or motor symptoms without a medical cause. The client yelling at the nurse does not reflect a conversion of emotional distress into physical symptoms.