Analysis Of Joe Family In Living Beyond Loss : Death In The Family

1. The following paper discusses a case scenario of Adrian, Judy, and Pam. The family is presenting to therapy in regards to their concern about their adult daughter (Pam) not listening to her parents (Adrian and Judy) requests. From the beginning of the session, it is apparent each member has a different view of what their role is in the family. Roles are vital in ensuring healthy family functioning and should be clearly defined so that each member understands what they are to accomplish (Tobin, 2016a). It is revealed later into the session that Judy and Adrian were not able to conceive children, so they adopted both Pam and their deceased son, Victor. Victor committed suicide ten years ago.

Regarding the family unit, Friedman, Bowden and Jones (2003) states “This basic unit so strongly influences the development of an individual that it may determine the success or failure of that person’s life.” Due to the this influence it is vital to assess the family during the process of caring for a patient. Their environment, lifestyle and support system all have a tremendous effect on the healing process either good or bad. In this essay, the Hillard family from the movie Mrs. Doubtfire (1993) will be analyzed.

Family is something that plays a tremendous role in our life. Even though the structure of families has changed over the years, it is important to acknowledge that there many families out there whether they are traditional families, nuclear family, stepfamilies or others which tend to have different types of problems in their families. Therefore, many families attempt to go to family therapy in order for them to obtain help in solving the different types of issues they might have at home. As stated in the book Family Therapy by Michael P. Nichols (2013), “The power of family therapy derives from bringing parents and children together to transform their interaction… What keeps people stuck in their inability to see their own participation in the problems that plague them. With eyes fixed firmly on what recalcitrant others are doing, it’s hard for most people to see the patterns that bind them together. The family therapist’s job is to give them a wake-up call” (2013).

The life transition of death and dying is inevitably one with which we will all be faced; we will all experience the death of people we hold close throughout our lifetime. This paper will explore the different processes of grief including the bereavement, mourning, and sorrow individuals go through after losing someone to death. Bereavement is a period of adaptation following a life changing loss. This period encompasses mourning, which includes behaviors and rituals following a death, and the wide range of emotions that go with it. Sorrow is the state of ongoing sadness not overcome in the grieving process; though not pathological, persistent

Also, sometimes a parent's love makes them unable to let go. I've seen so many parents put their needs above their infant's because they just can't bear to suffer the grief of losing a child. It's heartbreaking when you can see parents in total denial and you know that the end will come one way or another but they just can't accept it. I don't know if that's the case here or not, but it's certainly a possibility.

That is, the nuclear family's relationship-or lack of relationship-to the extended family or the community may play a huge part in functioning. Ackerman (1958) viewed family work as a special method of treatment of emotional disorders based on dynamically oriented interviews with the whole family. This looks at the who, what, where, when, why, and how of family. The goal is to bring to the surface all the "contributors" (person or thing) of the issue and map out ways to manage it.

After there is a death in the family, the family structure completely changes and a new homeostasis takes shape.

Most families are complicated but supportive. For example, a family could argue a lot, but still love one another. In Alice Walker’s “Everyday Use” mama still supports her daughters even though, they’re not around much. Their issues are not unique because my family has its issues, too. The family in “Everyday Use” and my family both have similarities and differences regarding siblings, bonds, and mothers.

“Ordinary people” everywhere are faced day after day with the ever so common tragedy of losing a loved one. As we all know death is inevitable. We live with this harsh reality in the back of our mind’s eye. Only when we are shoved in the depths of despair can we truly understand the multitude of emotions brought forth. Although people may try to be empathetic, no one can truly grasp the rawness felt inside of a shattered heart until death has knocked at their door. We live in an environment where death is invisible and denied, yet we have become desensitized to it. These inconsistencies appear in the extent to which families are personally affected by death—whether they

Dr. Murray Bowen, a psychiatrist, offered us the family systems theory. This theory views the family as an emotional unit, further providing a thinking systems approach to describe the complex interactions in the unit. Bowen offered, “A change in one person’s functioning is predictably followed by a reciprocal change in the functioning of others” (Kerr, 2000). If one person within the family unit is having a difficult time, it effects everyone within the family unit. An example of this would be a father who is the primary breadwinner for his family suddenly loosing his job. Prior

Black Americans can have different emotions from crying to being silent. People usually gather in large gatherings to pay respect. Black Americans have a belief that death is God’s will and the deceased is in God’s hand and will be reunited

The loss of a loved one is a very crucial time where an individual can experience depression, somatic symptoms, grief, and sadness. What will be discussed throughout this paper is what the bereavement role is and its duration, as well as the definition of disenfranchised grief and who experiences this type of grief. I will also touch upon the four tasks of mourning and how each bereaved individual must accomplish all four tasks before mourning can be finalized. Lastly, with each of these topics, nursing implications will be outlined on how to care for bereaved individuals and their families.

The passing of a loved one is a universal experience and every person will experience loss or heartache, at some point in their life. Some people obviously appear upset, some do not, grief is individual, dependent on; age, gender, development stage, personality, their normal stress reactions, the support available, their relationships or attachments, other death experiences, how others react to their own grief around them (Thompson & Hendry, 2012).

This family is seeking therapy assistance due to the following reasons: grief and loss encountered during Kate’s cancerous condition and after her death, the lawsuit Anna placed onto her parents, Jesse’s delinquent behavior, and the parents’ deteriorating relationship. The family is concerned with the alliances that have been building within the family and in regards to their negative communication skills. The Fitzgerald family feels that the family is becoming dysfunctional and distant. Having a positive attachment amongst each other at all times assists with minimizing issues, and it is much easier to find solutions to any problems or challenges when positive relationships emerge (Cassidy and Shaver, 2008, p. 200). This is why the Fitzgerald family is seeking help now.

In this essay I will outline the main theoretical models relating to loss and grief.