Anxiety Disorders Case Study #3

Case Study 3: Bert is 40 years old and works on an assembly line in a brush factory. He is terribly afraid of being contaminated by germs. He avoids shaking hands with others. He won’t eat in the cafeteria. He has trouble leaving the bathroom because he isn’t sure he has washed his hands well enough.

Bert's fear of contamination is a clear cut example of a specific phobia. His case is very severe, causing isolation from others and a limited lifestyle. This phobia also causes a case of obsessive-compulsive disorder, evidenced by his repeated handwashing, directly stemming from his avoidance of germs.

I think that the most effective form of therapy for Bert would be Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) which can also be called systematic desensitization or exposure. In this method, Bert would systematically face his fears. He would first imagine facing his fear, and then he would build on that until he could face his fear in real life without any major symptoms.

Abraham Lincoln and Melancholia

Abraham Lincoln was born in Kentucky on February 12th, 1809. He was our president during the Civil War. His mother died early in his life, and his father was a fronteirsman. Lincoln was mostly self educated, and he became a lawyer in 1837. Later, he served four terms in the Illinois House Of Representatives. In 1842, Abe Lincoln married Mary Todd, and they had four sons. Only one of them, Robert, survived into adulthood. Abraham Lincoln became our sixteenth president on March 4, 1861. He was assassinated by John Wilkes Booth on April 14, 1865.

Lincoln had severe depression throughout his life, starting when his mother died. The death of his younger sister led him to feel like he was alone in the world. The death of his first girlfriend, Ann Rutledge, in 1835, along with his tense relations with Mary Todd led him to at times become suicidal. The stress of the presidency and of the war also contributed to his depression. His favorite son, Willie, died in 1862. Lincoln's depression came during periods of intense depression, followed by larger spans of more mild depression.

I believe that depression, otherwise known as melancholia, is a very serious disease; not only can it cause you to turn inward and lose your friends and happiness, it can cost you your job and reputation, and if it is severe enough, your life. Lincoln was an exceptional man. He was able to rein in his severe depression throughout his life and become one of our country's great presidents. Lincoln's condition was only known to his close friends. Suprisingly, given the severity of his depression, he was able to keep it in check and hide it from the public. The fact that he was able to do this by sheer force of will without any of the modern anti-depressant drugs is truly amazing.