Question

Tamara, a 54 year old female, moved to Seattle about 6 months ago and now works as a cocktail waitress in a bar. When she first applied for the job, the name on her driver’s license and social security card did not match the name she was now using. She explained that she was divorcing and changing back to her maiden name. The manager of the bar saw no reason to question her explanation. Tamara was a very hard worker who got along well with the other employees and the customers. Her coworkers liked her but thought she was odd because she never spoke about her past. When they took a break together, Tamara laughed and smiled at everyone’s stories but never added any of her own. When directly questioned about her past, Tamara only smiled and shrugged, occasionally stating that she couldn’t remember. One day at work, a customer kept staring at her. The customer asked another waitress if Tamara had a sister who lived in Montana. The waitress said she didn’t know. This customer insisted that Tamara looked just like a woman from Montana that he knew about. This woman had been married with two children and had disappeared about 6 months before. There had been a massive search for her, but nothing was ever discovered. Police suspected thee worst because nothing else had been missing except the woman’s purse and the clothes on her back.

Required:
a. What are Tamara' s symptoms, that may be viewed as out of the norm?
b. What diagnosis would you be tempted to assign to her?
c. What treatment recommendations do you and your group suggest? Why?

Answer 1

Tamara's reluctance to share her past and inconsistencies in her identity documentation suggest potential psychological or personal issues. Without concrete evidence, it would not be appropriate to assign a specific diagnosis, but an evaluation by a mental health professional would be advisable to explore underlying issues. Treatment would depend on the diagnosis but may include therapy and legal consultation.

Step-by-step explanation:

Regarding Tamara's circumstances, there are several symptoms that are considered out of the norm, such as a deliberate avoidance of discussing her past, difficulty remembering it when asked, and a customer's remark suggesting a resemblance to a missing person. The disconnect between her social security card and driver's license name, along with her unwillingness to share personal history, could indicate she is hiding something significant about her identity or personal history.

Based on limited information, it would be speculative and potentially irresponsible to assign a diagnosis without a thorough psychological evaluation; however, a mental health professional may explore whether Tamara could be experiencing dissociative symptoms, including possible dissociative amnesia or identity issues related to trauma or stress. Alternatively, this pattern could suggest deliberate concealment due to reasons other than psychological conditions, such as trying to escape a dangerous situation.

For treatment recommendations, should there be psychological distress, it would be best to recommend an evaluation by a licensed mental health professional who can assess for trauma, stress-related disorders, or other mental health conditions. A comprehensive approach including therapeutic support to address potential trauma, stress or identity confusion, and possibly legal consultation if her past involves legal or safety concerns, would be justified.

Answer 2

A. The symptoms considered abnormal are the lack of memory that Tamara has and the different names in her documents.

B. I would be tempted to diagnose it as someone with dissociative personality disorder.

C. As a treatment, the most suitable would be psychotherapy and the use of medications.

Step-by-step explanation:

At the first moment we read about Tamara's case, we may be tempted to think that she has amnesia and therefore does not remember anything about her past. However, when we continue to read about her history and the way she behaves, we can consider that she suffers from dissociative personality disorder, where she assumes to be a completely different person, which explains the different name that she presents in the documents and the disappearance of a woman just like her who lived in another city.

Amnesia is one of the symptoms of dissaciative personality disorder, which causes the person to completely forget basic and personal information about his life, at the time when another personality takes control. This symptom reinforces the diagnosis for dissociative personality disorder.

The most suitable in this case, was that Tamara had psychotherapy sessions in order to be able to reintegrate her true personality. In addition, the use of medications could be necessary.