A young woman was found on the beach wandering aimlessly. She appeared to be battered and bruised as evidenced by blood on her torn clothes. She had no identification and when taken to the sexual assault trauma center, the social worker noted that this young woman had no memory of herself or her past. What is the most likely disorder for the social worker to consider for this young woman?

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The young woman's lack of memory of herself or her past, coupled with her apparent trauma and physical evidence of harm, suggests dissociative amnesia as the most likely disorder. Dissociative identity disorder and dissociative repression may also involve memory loss, but the symptoms described in the scenario are more indicative of dissociative amnesia. Derealization disorder involves a sense of detachment from reality but does not necessarily involve memory loss.

A Young Woman Was Found on the Beach Wandering Aimlessly