Opinion ID: 1674502
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: plaintiff's disability

Text: Shelia testified that the blow by Baldridge was between her shoulder blades and left red finger marks on her back. After Baldridge struck plaintiff, she went into the bathroom and cried and then returned to complete her shift. She could not sleep that night. The next day she was too upset to return to work so she went to see Dr. Kalifey, a general practitioner. He found no symptoms of physical injury but did prescribe a relaxant. She then saw Dr. Naalbandian, a neurologist, on two occasions in July of 1988. She complained of headaches and cervical pain from the blow on her back. Dr. Naalbandian performed several tests. He found that her symptoms were mostly muscular and would improve with time. He did not prescribe medication and was of the opinion that she was physically able to return to work. On August 10, 1988, Shelia was seen by Dr. McCann, a general practitioner. He diagnosed a muscle and ligament strain in the neck along with emotional trauma, anxiety and depression. Dr. McCann has been treating plaintiff on a regular basis (about thirty times at time of trial) and has prescribed pain medication for her physical injuries and antidepressant medication for her psychological injuries. His prognosis regarding her physical complaints was good and he believed she should recover in three to six months from date of trial. Dr. McCann referred Shelia to Frank Akridge, a family counselor, for her emotional problems. She saw Akridge six times and he diagnosed her as suffering from adjustment reaction which includes the symptoms of insomnia, nightmares, difficulty carrying on normal relationships and an obsession about the incident that precipitated the symptoms. Finally, in August of 1988, Shelia began seeing Dr. King, a psychiatrist. He diagnosed post-traumatic stress syndrome, a disorder that occurs after a very significant stress in a person's life. He has prescribed antidepressants, tranquilizers and group therapy. It is his opinion that plaintiff's psychotic disorder was caused by the incident on June 29, 1988, and that plaintiff has been unable and is presently unable to return to work. However, with continued treatment, he concluded that she should recover within a year from date of trial. Shelia testified that she continues to suffer from sleeplessness and crying spells. She no longer likes to be around people very much. She weighed 112 pounds at the time of the incident and lost about twenty five pounds. Her husband's testimony corroborated that of Shelia. Defendants introduced no expert testimony to contradict the opinions of plaintiff's medical experts. Our law is well settled that findings of fact by the trial judge shall not be disturbed on appeal absent manifest error. Arceneaux v. Domingue, 365 So.2d 1330 (La.1978); Canter v. Koehring Co., 283 So.2d 716 (La.1973). We find no manifest error in the finding by the trial judge that the psychological trauma of Baldridge's act resulted in post-traumatic stress syndrome, a disabling injury. The medical evidence supports this finding. Accordingly, the courts below correctly found that plaintiff was entitled to temporary total disability benefits as a result of the intentional act of her employer.