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Case Study: Anxiety Essay

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Instructions: Read the following case study about a woman, Allison, who is suffering from anxiety. After you have read the case study, diagnose Allison and present some methods of treatment by answering the questions. Presenting Complaint Allison, a 33-year-old white woman, knew that it was finally time for her to seek psychological services. She had always been an anxious person and, for years, had managed to keep it under control. But, this time she felt as though she was fighting a losing battle and worried that it was going to result in her being fired from her job. Allison worked as a flight attendant for a major airline and loved interacting with the passengers. She was particularly proud of her extensive knowledge of aircraft …show more content…

Furthermore, Allison worries about the danger of being out at night in a strange town. She explains, “It’s just not safe for a single woman to be out at night. Some cities have a high rate of crime and are extremely dangerous.” Allison finds that she worries about all of these things simultaneously, which leaves her exhausted and overwhelmed. However, when she tries to sleep, she cannot shut her mind off. She lays awake for hours thinking about all of the things that could happen. Therefore, Allison is often sleep deprived which leaves her stressed, tense, and irritable. Allison has experienced a few panic attacks in her life, but has not had a panic attack in more than two years. But she still carries Xanax with her everywhere she goes, just in case she needs it. Ever since she was 7 years old, she has worried about random issues. Allison remembers walking through her house at 7 years old, checking on all of the appliances to make sure that they were all unplugged before everyone fell asleep in fear that a fire would break out and burn the house down. Allison was also worried as a 3rd grader about her mother dying any day from cancer, since her mother was a smoker. When Allison was 16, she had great difficulty with learning how to drive in fear that she would be involved in a car accident. Indeed, Allison was involved in 2 car accidents, none of which were her fault.

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