Schizoid Personality Disorder Case Study

S.W. is a 62-year-old female who suffers from schizophrenia, depression, suicidal ideation, and a complicated relationship with both her daughter and husband. Her current husband is from her third marriage with her daughter being from her first marriage. S.W. has been admitted before this hospitalization due to her depression, panic, and anxiety. She finds herself frequently experiencing auditory and visual hallucinations that constantly tell her that she is not good enough and is worthless. Every day S.W. is known to drink three to four alcoholic beverages and smoke two joints of marijuana. She used heroin daily for 11 years before stopping during her teenage years and early adulthood. Thirteen years ago, her son died in a severe car accident and her daughter suffers from schizophrenia. S.W. demonstrates using isolation for a defense mechanism. She demonstrates isolation when describing any serious event in her lifetime. While describing how her mother physically abused her and her father sexually abused her, she showed no emotion or hatred towards them and talked about the events like they meant nothing to her life. She also spent ten years in jail that she could talk about without showing any emotion on her face or expressing any emotion through changing her tone of voice. Another defense mechanism S.W. demonstrates is …show more content…
is Schizoid Personality Disorder. Schizoid is characterized by “a profound defect in the ability to form personal relationships or respond to others in any meaningful, emotional way” (Townsend, 2011, p. 568). Although she has been through three marriages, she stated “my marriages are nothing, they are emotionless and poor choices of mine” because she understands that she cannot interact properly with others. She seems shy and anxious around others and tends to isolate herself away from other people. S.W. also always seems bland and has the inability to be lighthearted towards