The Captivating Aliyah: A Patient From Dallas in New York - Report Example

Introduction

The most intriguing and captivating person and the patient who I have had the pleasure of interacting with is Aliyah (whose name has been changed). She was a twenty-eight-year-old blonde girl with brown eyes that looked golden when reflected in the sun. Aliyah was quite petite for her age, and one could be forgiven for assuming her to be a teenager, her chic and modern dress style was a further bluff to her actual age. She was born and raised in Dallas, Texas, but had moved to New York at twenty-two trying to break through into Broadway. This breakthrough had, however, proved to be quite elusive.

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Conversation

On March 21, 2018, Aliyah sat on the chaise longue across from me, the afternoon sun reflected off her eyes as she stared in my direction. I could tell she was not looking at me but through me, lost deep in her memories as she tried to recall the past.

Aliyah was suffering from anxiety attacks and depression. As Aliyah spoke, she picked at the hem of her short green-checkered skirt. Looking at her nails, it was quickly noticed that she bit on them a lot, the fading green nail polish tapered with rough edges showed as much.

Aliyah described how she had been bullied and marginalized by her fellow students all through elementary. Depression set in due to constant bullying from her peers. However, she always put out a cheerful face and created an illusion of a happy young girl. "What about your depression," I enquired, "when did you realize you are depressed?"

“I dunno, I think I have been sad...uhm ‘depressed’ since my schooldays, I just did not know the term for it.” “I thought it would change when I moved here from Texas.”

It seemed that Aliyah had moved to New York to get a new start, her escape in school had been acting, and she hoped to expound on it. She claimed that she had to act as a happy girl after her dad remarried, and she could not confide in her stepfamily. Years of acting and pretending she was okay had led her to discover her talent as an actor. However, her attempt at Broadway ended up in failure since she would get anxious during auditions and would walk out even before her auditioning performance.

As Aliyah narrated her ordeal, I could barely see the wrinkles under her eyes, the frayed ends of her hair, and the involuntary shivers that shook her small frame. This way, her age became evident, and the image of a young teen faded away to reveal a woman who had navigated through waves of depression and anxiety without a sight of land or an anchor to hold her down. She sobbed uncontrollably as she divulged more of her ailments to me, and I could not help but feel empathetic towards her plight.

Anxiety is an intense and profound sense of panic and discomfort often marked by observable symptoms (such as stress, trembling, and elevated heart rate), concerns about the truth and existence of the danger, and concerns about one's ability to cope (Laganà et al. 2017). Depression is a mental illness marked by depression, sedentary behavior, difficulties in thought and concentrating, a substantial rise or decline in appetite and bedtime, emotions of utter despair and despondency, and often-suicidal thoughts (Segal and Teasdale 2010). Once the patient's mental state is determined, a medication plan consisting of antidepressants may be prescribed. Antidepressants have side effects, which can be detrimental to a patient's health. Some of these side effects include nausea, reduced sexual desire, constipation, and insomnia (Grillon et al. 2017)

Mental Illnesses

Treatment of mental illnesses is one of the most ambiguous practices that a medical practitioner will face. Individual mental fortitudes are different; the circumstances that led up to their disorders are also unique. The uniqueness of different patients should also translate into different methods of treatment. However, the treatment and medication are similar for every case of depression; only the dosages vary. It is not easy for medical personnel to discern with acute confidence, the causes, and the treatments for mental illnesses. Treatments are often trials of different medications to determine which medication will have the most favorable results (Bradley et al. 2018).

The first step in prescribing treatment for depression and anxiety is finding the root source of the mental ailment. Furthermore, it is crucial to understand the illness from the perspective of the patient and how they perceive their mental state.

Social Interactions

The social interactions of mental health patients are another aspect that allows caregivers to try to determine the patients' mental affairs. Different forms of interactions and relationships reveal various traits of a person (Laganà et al. 2017).

Aliyah had stopped crying by now, and her face was back to that young abundance that would make one mistake her for a teenager. Her smile and golden eyes almost fooled me, but I quickly remembered her statement on putting on an act, and as I gaze deeper into those sunlight yellow eyes, I see the pain hidden within. “Here is what I think we should do Aliyah,” I offered, “You should try antidepressants for the depression and anxiety attacks, ok?”

“Whatever you say, I’m willing to try anything men.”

Aliyah's medication led to bouts of insomnia, constipation and her sexual desire became almost non-existent. The medication's effects became more evident as the prescription continued; I noticed the extent of the side effects during our last session. At 9:30 A.M on April 14, 2019, she came in to see me after a string of sleepless nights.

The once youthful face was now haggard, and her beautiful golden eyes sunken. Aliyah's gait now resembled that of an older woman, but despite all that, she still kept a smile on her face.

Conclusion

I promised to attend the opening for her show. A month later, Aliyah was found in her apartment, having committed suicide by overdose. She did not leave a note or any reason as to why she decided to take her own life. She never got to act in the show, but I was glad that I had met her, and she had shared her innermost feelings and thoughts with me.

References

Bradley P, Shiekh M, Mehra V, Vrbicky K, Layle S, Olson MC, Maciel A, Cullors A, Garces JA, Lukowiak AA. 2018. Improved efficacy with targeted pharmacogenetic-guided treatment of patients with depression and anxiety: A randomized clinical trial demonstrating clinical utility. Journal of Psychiatric Research. 96:100–107. doi:10.1016/j.jpsychires.2017.09.024. [accessed 2020 Jul 23]. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0022395617307185

Grillon C, O’Connell K, Lieberman L, Alvarez G, Geraci M, Pine DS, Ernst M. 2017. Distinct Responses to Predictable and Unpredictable Threat in Anxiety Pathologies: Effect of Panic Attack. Biological Psychiatry: Cognitive Neuroscience and Neuroimaging. 2(7):575–581. doi:10.1016/j.bpsc.2016.08.005. [accessed 2020 Jul 23]. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5665581/

Laganà AS, La Rosa VL, Rapisarda AMC, Valenti G, Sapia F, Chiofalo B, Rossetti D, Ban Frangez H, Vrtacnik Bokal E, Giovanni Vitale S. 2017. Anxiety and depression in patients with endometriosis: impact and management challenges. International Journal of Women’s Health. Volume 9:323–330. doi:10.2147/ijwh.s119729. [accessed 2020 Jul 23]. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5440042/

Segal ZV, Teasdale J. 2010. Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy for Depression, Second Edition. Google Books. [accessed 2020 Jul 23]. https://books.google.com.ua/books?hl=en&lr=&id=QHRVDwAAQBAJ&oi=fnd&pg=PP1&dq=depression&ots=EUGh2FNzpa&sig=Z9UtE9-VdKv5jI5-KZ88s5Y3Cg0&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q=depression&f=false