Introduction Andrea C. has come to counseling as a result of a vicious physical and sexual assault that occurred at her workplace. Her presenting symptoms, in correlation with the violent nature of the trauma she experienced, indicate an early diagnosis of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). Peter-Hagene and Ullman (2015) correlated the severity of PTSD with the severity of violence during the attack. Furthermore, based on her reported symptomology, Andrea is also meeting criteria for a comorbid diagnosis of Major Depressive Disorder (MDD). This summary will discuss the clinical diagnosis and rationale for each diagnosis. It will also provide reasons for considering and further assessing the potentiality of the presence of Somatic Symptom Disorder. Finally, it will examine the cultural aspects of the case and diagnosis. …show more content…
is a 49-year-old, divorced female, who was employed as the manager of a local firm. She had previously expressed a desire to who additional security on-site, because she often felt unsafe. At around 6:00 AM on the day of her assault, a stranger violently physically attacked her, with both blunt force and with a knife, stabbed her several times, and attempted to sexually assault her, before running off. Andrea suffered several physical injuries, including “a fractured skull, fractured nose, facial lacerations, and multiple stab wounds,” (Butcher, Hooley, & Mineka, 2013, p. 117). Following the incident, and during the assessment, Andrea also presented emotional and mental distressing symptoms. She expressed increased anxiety, cognitive difficulties, which included memory loss, and the overall symptomology of PTSD. She even expressed an inability to go back to her job due to fear and anxiety. Along with clinical interviewing, the Minnesota Mult-Phasic Inventory was used for assessment purposes (Butcher, Hooley, & Mineka, 2013). Diagnostic Impressions F43.10 Post-Traumatic Stress