Problem
Kat, 35 years old, is referred to your office. She is not married and does not have any children. She has been employed with her job at the Marriott for the past 10 years and reports great enjoyment at her job. She states that she is generally a calm and not easily stressed individual, able to cope with most of the ups and downs of life; however, the occasional encounter with a snake can put her into a quivering wreck. In fact, the other day at work, a snake slithered across the path directly in front of her as she was walking guests to their hotel room. She immediately began to hyperventilate. She also reported feeling as though her heart was about to come out of her chest, along with significant trembling. It took nearly 5 minutes for her to calm down before she could continue walking the guests to her room.
In the days after this experience, she reports hypervigilance, constantly scanning places for a snake. She stated that every morning prior to going to work, she experiences increased heart rate and dizziness as she fears she may see a snake again. This fear has also started impacting her ability to function at work, as she has been avoiding taking guests to the hotel tower where she saw the snake, asking a co-worker to cover for her.
i. Based on the information provided, what diagnosis/diagnoses would you give the patient?
ii. Identify the symptoms within the case that support your diagnosis/diagnoses. Be sure to also include the duration, intensity, and/or frequency of the symptoms as appropriate.
iii. Based on your assessment, describe the treatment you would implement with the patient.