Amnesia victim won't agree to see her family

Found this story posted in The Houston Chronicle:

The 34-year-old Albuquerque woman suffering from apparent amnesia as a result of being struck in the head after she moved to Houston for a sales job does not recognize her own name and has chosen not to see her family because she does not remember them, police said Tuesday.

“It doesn’t register with her at all,” said Houston Police Department homicide investigator C.P. “Abbey” Abbondandolo. “She is having a little trouble understanding all the things that have happened to her.”

Police are not releasing the woman’s name to protect her privacy. They also declined to say whether she is married or has children because she asked that no details about her background be made public.

Investigators believe the injuries to her head occurred when someone struck her, but said it is unknown if any of her personal belongings were stolen. After spending two weeks at St. Luke’s Episcopal Hospital, she was released and is staying at an undisclosed location.

Recalled a dog

The woman was found May 3 when she walked into a St. Luke’s Medical Clinic at 6363 San Felipe, clutching only her keys.

Her car, a Buick Century with Washington state license plates, was found last week parked outside a Barnes and Noble bookstore in the 7600 block of Westheimer. Her purse was in the car.

Police turned up no missing persons reports matching her description.

Though she recalled walking a brown-and-black dog named “Bones,” the HPD found nothing in her car to indicate she owned an animal.

Brochures inside the woman’s car suggested she had been looking for an apartment, but investigators had not yet confirmed Tuesday if she had rented a place or established an address.

Hasn’t seen relatives

The woman has spoken with her family, but so far has chosen not to see them, Abbondandolo said. She is more comfortable speaking with people she has met since her ordeal.

“As bizarre as it sounds, the names of her family members and her friends are not registering with her at all,” the HPD investigator said. “She is shy when it comes to talking with strangers, and at this point — to her — her family is essentially strangers.

“What’s happening now is she’s trying to reacquaint herself with friends and family, which is difficult to say the least. That is a strange scenario to be in: ‘I don’t know who my parents are. I don’t know who anybody else is,’ ” Abbondandolo said.

A Houston couple told the Houston Chronicle they found a dog matching Bones’ description in the same parking lot where the woman’s car was found and on the same day she walked into the clinic for help.

‘A very resilient woman’

The woman does not recall the animal well enough to identify it, however, so Abbondandolo said it has been placed in a temporary home.

“At this point, she’s just got to take care of herself,” he said of the woman. “I think she’s got a long road ahead of her, but I think she’s going to be all right. I think she’s a very resilient woman.”

Best of luck to her, and hope for a speedy recovery....

She doesn't want to see her family because she doesn't remember them? Maybe if she saw them, it would trigger those memories? Maybe she moved from Albuquerque to get away from her family. Could be she remembers them just fine, but "I don't remember" a heck of a lot easier than saying "I don't want you in my life anymore".

There are also other things a little "off" about her story (to me anyways, feel free to disagree)...

She knows enough to ask that nothing be revealed - yet she doesn't want to see her family... hmmm.... When there is smoke, there is usually fire. No one reported her as missing? How many of us don't have one person that they would check in with to make sure we arrived safely to another state? I hope I'm wrong here... but it doesn't sound like it?

Something else that's not really explained is, Why her car has Washington license plates if she is from New Mexico?

Seems to me someone with true amnesia would be desperate to remember, and would jump at a chance to meet with family in the hopes of triggering something.

Speaking of which, why not send the family in anyways? You've posted her picture everywhere, see who remembers her, find her family, send them in... since "she has amnesia" she wouldn't know that her family is in the room right?

A funny part is "They have her picture plastered in the paper and on the internet but they will not release her name because they "want to protect her privacy"??? that's hilarious....

I don't mean to sound cynical here, and yes, she may really be suffering from amnesia, but there are just so many things that don't add up, if I was suffering from amnesia, I know i'd want to see my family and anyone else from my past, regardless of how I felt about them (hey, i'm suffering from amnesia, I don't KNOW how I felt about them in the past!)

But then again... I'm not a Neurologist, or any other type of doctor for that matter, and I don't know how amnesia works, I'm not even going to pretend or claim to... I've never gone through something as horrible as that... and hope I never do....

Thoughts?