This article, “No Worry Allowed. Get Out!” A Case Study Tribute to the Life and Work of Michael White, focuses on anxiety in children and the use of narrative therapy. According to the author, anxiety disorders are common in youth affecting about 10 percent of our youth’s population. Furthermore, the category of young children are affected even more my anxiety showing an increase to 15 percent; five percent higher than the overall average of all children under 18 years of age. The article discusses that young children with anxiety may suffer from intense and persistent fears, shyness, and social withdrawal, when faced with an unfamiliar environment or situation. These children face a higher risk of having a diagnosis of social anxiety, separation anxiety, and generalized anxiety disorder. However, recently studies found that pronounced worry in children is associated with negative opinions about themselves and their ability to problem-solve; including their capability to perceive and achieve good problem solving skills. This study showed a link between the child’s ability to possess confidence in their problem solving skills and worry. Hence, linking …show more content…
the children who experience high levels of worry and the use of interventions that are specifically targeted to assess and improve the child’s problem solving belief about themselves are effective. Additionally, this article gives us a case example in which a ten year old girl is asked to self-measure her own personal strength, along with her level of fear and worry.
The premise of using narrative therapy in child focused problems is to allow the child to characterize the good in therapy by making the familiar strange and the strange familiar. In this study the idea of making the strange familiar is the process in which the child becomes conscious of their personal strength and capabilities. This article references the work of Michael White in narrative therapy; he believed his work was entirely a way to assist the person in building a strong personal story. A way to replace the old, possibly negative story they have already built; through the exploration of alternative personal stories in
therapy. The author tell the story of how White used his technique of narrative therapy; by beginning from an environment that safe and inviting. He often started his session by asking children the simple question of: “What do you like to do?” In contrast to a problem solving method, which would specifically concentrate on the problem at hand and ways to correct it. By inviting the child to list their interests, self-confidence increases and so does their comfortability of continuing therapy sessions. White also used collaboration with family members, externalization of the problem, and examining the effects of said problem on the person as a whole. All the while, using an open environment that is different from what the child normally experiences; where they are able to celebrate their accomplishments and experiment with ways to reach goals they have identified.
There is no doubt that children have a very innocent mind and it is not as easy for them to understand unfortunate events. Though they are still affected by things such as the death of a family member, natural disasters and circumstances of that kind. In the film Beasts of The Southern Wild, Hushpuppy faces a few fatalities which are approached using coping methods. These methods are found in the BASIC Ph Coping Model developed by Dr. Mooli Lahad who is the director of the Community Stress Prevention Center in Qiryat Shmona in Israel. Hushpuppy’s relationships with adults, her mom and also her dad, can easily be linked to some of these coping methods.
Antwone Fisher was an individual that endured so many things. He faced a lot of challenges that may have seemed impossible to recover from. This story was an example of the many things that some children may experience. Antwone was not raised in an upper crust home. He did not grow up in a home in which his mother and father was present. Instead of having positive role models, he had to live with individuals that were abusive to him. When observing Antwone’s personality, one may refer to two different theorists such as Bandura and Rogers.
Elisa Black has been experiencing chronic anxiety for the majority of her life, starting at age two. Many times it is unclear why exactly why certain individuals develop anxiety while others go through life unaffected. Black talks about the guilt she feels, having not experienced any “grand traumas” in her life, explaining how she had a “wonderful life” and “many advantages and gifts and wonderful parents and friends, and [she] still had this fear that [she] couldn 't explain” (Black 2016). Over the years, many theories about anxiety have been developed, some explaining why exactly anxiety can occur without a large external trauma happening in the person’s life, and how certain people are naturally more susceptible than others.
Research has shown that children who are at highest risk for toxic stress are those exposed to social isolation, poverty, family violence, and parents with substance abuse or depression (Franke, 2014). If adults and authority figures can identify toxic stress in children during the early stages, measures can be taken to prevent the harmful effects that are associated with this high stress level. Treatment of toxic stress should be aimed towards helping children learn to deal with stress in a healthy manner and responding to the child’s needs (Franke, 2014). Providing children with a strong support system is crucial so children have an outlet to communicate with and receive advice on healthy coping mechanisms. Examples of a buffering support system could be a parent, relative, social worker, or counselor. Recent research has also found that treatment of toxic stress can occur through teaching relaxation methods such as breathing techniques and guided imagery (Franke, 2014). It may also be beneficial to focus on the caretaker of the child by providing educational opportunities regarding toxic stress and by administering social resources for the parents, such as parenting classes to help with problem solving skills (Franke, 2014). It is also important that the nation as a whole raise awareness of the issue of toxic stress and provide schools,
For this reason, some of the brief therapies, such as strategic family therapy or solution-focused therapy, that focus on rapid change without much attention to understanding, might be more appropriate. However, I believe these brief therapies do not give clients enough time to really parse out their problem. I am wary of counseling that limits clients’ ability to tell their stories fully, which seems like just one more way of silencing people, oppressing them, and keeping them in line. In working with my clients I want to collectively understand how problem-saturated stories developed, the cultural, familial, or biological factors that might be involved, and the availability of choices. I believe that narrative therapy is the most flexible approach in this respect because although not brief, it is efficient and seems to be effective long-term, although more research is needed, which is challenging because of the subjective nature of this approach (Madigan, 2011). In my therapy practice, I want to leave clients feeling hopeful and liberated by helping them to see the problem as separate from their identities and as only one story to choose from several, and by acknowledging the contextual factors contributing to the
Anxiety is a typical developmental pattern where children tend to worry about certain things at different ages. Preschoolers are often worried about the dark or being separated from their parents. After about age 7, children begin to feel anxious about friendships, speaking in class, school grades, or letting their friends, family or teachers down. Teens worry about friends, their future and health. Big changes such as a new school, a move, changes in the family structure, upsetting things like loss of a frien...
One important component of Attachment theory talks about fear children have in which children have less fear when they are aware of their primary caregivers’ availability and affection leads to a secure attachment to form between a caregiver and child. On the other hand, Erikson states that if the virtue of hope is not established then an infant will have a fear and start to mistrust and this will affect the development. This will have an effect on the confidence that the children develop during infancy, childhood, adolescence, and adulthood. A child can start to present separation anxiety and stranger anxiety at around 9 to 18 months a child had a stranger anxiety when they were young, that may affect their development based on the type of Patterns of attachment are secure, avoidant, and ambivalent. If a child had a secure attachment he will probably not have any form of trust issues and long-lasting relationships, a secure attachment will impact his self-esteem and have a good healthy relationship with his parents and friends and seek out social support from others because of him being able to function by himself in his adolescence and adulthood. On the other hand, if a child experienced avoidant or
John and Janet Doe brought their 16 year-old daughter, Jane Doe, into my office for evaluation. They are concerned about her regression in academic function. To gather more information for my evaluation, I interviewed Jane, her mother, and one of her teachers, and gathered Jane’s educational and medical records. I obtained further data from behavioral observation and standardized psychological testing. After collecting all of the information I needed, I have concluded that Jane has developed Social Anxiety Disorder (SAD).
Everybody has felt anxiety at some point in their life. Whether it is taking a test or expressing their feelings for someone else, everyone gets nervous for some reason. Some people get more nervous than others and sometimes that nervous feeling never goes away. Having an anxiety disorder causes a person to feel nervous or scared, even if there is no reason to be. There is a constant fear that something bad or humiliating is about to happen. Anxiety can affect anyone no matter the age group, from young children to grandparents. It affects society as a whole because people may not know the signs that they have anxiety. In school students are not taught about mental illnesses like anxiety and depression until they reach high school. Anxiety can affect the way people interact with their family and peers. In this paper, I will argue why anxiety and mental health problems are a global issue, the
He also explores various studies in relation to play therapy. Ogawa focuses on two types of therapy, Release Play Therapy and Child-Centered Play Therapy. Ogawa addresses how play is significant because it is used as a means of expression and resolution of children’s terrifying experiences. Ogawa highlights a study of play therapy, where the children affected by 9/11 refused to talk about their experiences when directly questioned, but narrated their painful stories when they played with toys. He suggest that the therapeutic environment “Defrosted frozen
The core concept of narrative therapy is rooted in postmodern theory. This includes having a positive and hopeful view of clients and their power to create change. Also, taking a “not-knowing” stance is essential in order to enhance collaboration between clients and therapist. Narrative Therapy encourages therapists to remain curious and acknowledge
The first half of the story is told from the protagonist Jack’s perspective, who is a five year old boy. I was able to relate to Jack’s habit of referring to objects in third person and also playing with toys while telling a story, all of which reminded me of myself when I was young. The love and help he gave his mother furthered my appreciation for him, however a...
King, N. J., Muris, P., & Ollendick, T. H. (2005). Childhood Fears and Phobias: Assessment and Treatment. Child & Adolescent Mental Health, 10(2), 50-56. doi:10.1111/j.1475-3588.2005.00118.x
This theory suggests that play plays a vital role of treating children’s disorders, children are able to gain some sense of control and alleviate their negative emotions including anxieties, fears and traumas through playing (Heidman & Hewitt, 2010; Freud, 1961). From the psychoanalytic perspective, play has a cathartic effect for children as it can assist children to cope with adverse feelings (Wolfberg, 2009, p. 32). Therefore, play is regarded as a therapeutic method to deal with the emotional problems (Wolfberg, 2009, p. 32). Moreover, this theory is of the view that play is an avenue to connect children’s past, current and future inner life (Willians, 2009, p. 575). Sigmund Freud was the pioneer who made a considerable contribution to this theory and he called “play” as the “royal road” to the child’s conscious and unconscious world (Willians, 2009, p. 575). He believed that play allows a combination of fantasy with reality, children should spend time playing every day as it is very healthy and necessarily (Willians, 2009, p. 575). Children are able to resolve psychological dilemmas, soften their worries and develop their understanding of life experiences (Wolfberg, 2009, p. 32). Erikson had further developed this theory, he recognized that the particular events are critical to shape the nature of
Cognitive development changes over time in how people think, how they solve problems and how their capacities for memory and attention change. As children are entering their adolescent age, they begin to start formal operations. They develop the ability to think scientifically and apply the rigor of the scientific method to cognitive tasks. According to Piaget, the most relevant stage to cognitive development in formal operations. He also mentions that cognitive advances at each stage are reflected not only in the solutions that children’s devise for problems but also in their explanations for how they arrived at the solution. From Piaget research as parents, they can decide if their child is ready for the responsibility that comes with new decisions. Can my child handle the responsible of getting behind the wheel of a car, but also can I trust that my