A Phobia-Inducing Notarization

The headline read “Notary: why can’t I sign my own name?” Amazing! Had notary tips from the National Notary Association broken into the mainstream? Had Dr. Gail Saltz, a contributor to NBC’s Today show, writer of Anatomy of a Secret Life: The Psychology of Living a Lie and author of the column bearing the headline taken an active interest in the notary public’s role in America?

Actually, no. Saltz is a psychiatrist with New York Presbyterian Hospital and the column, called Relationships Thursday, seeks to answer questions about people’s relationships, not notary FAQs. This column, released this week, discussed a notary's development of a phobia after notarizing some documents for a strange attorney. Now whenever the notary sets out to notarize any documents, he or she experiences similar anxiety, shortness of breath and a racing heart.

Saltz responds that it’s possible that the notary is uncomfortable with strangers and has developed a type of performance or social anxiety that prevents him or her from performing notarizations in front of others. She also sites that the notary may be resentful over having to perform notarizations with which he or she does not agree, as a result of being a notary public for his or her place of employment. Saltz also brings up the possibility of unresolved conflict with authority figures in the notary’s past.

Read Dr. Saltz's column!