This case study will assess and explore how Janet’s past experiences with childhood sexual abuse, neglect from parental exposure to drug and alcohol addiction practices, have shaped the women that she has become and the struggles that she is currently facing with her own addiction to drugs and alcohol, multiple divorces with multiple children resulting from those divorces. There will be further exploration into Janet as a person physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually. Assessment of Janet strengths while teaching her techniques on how to deal eaknesses, problems and struggles as they arise.
Additional, decisions will be on the results that Janet expects to see, along with a set timeframe for not only those results but also for goals that Janet needs to meet as she moves through the counseling process, how or who she will be accountable to for her actions, and a tentative plan for what will happen if she falls back into old habits. Initial and Personal Information Prior to the first counseling session, Janet was asked to come into the office 20 minutes before so that she could read, fill-out, and sign the appropriate forms.
The forms included what my job as a counsel entails, such as I am there to help her find answers within herself not to provide her with answers. She must sign and understand that l am held to a code of ethics that include things like, that she will be treated with the respect and dignity, and that her personal information will be kept private and confidential with the exception if she would provide me information that could endanger herself or others it is my job to report it to authorities, that I will not impose my personal views, and that there will be no personal/romantic relationship.
Additionally, Janet was informed of the types of counseling that I may use, such as prayer, mediation, scripture, holistic, cognitive behavior, emotional focused. I wanted Janet to be aware that there is no set therapy for everyone, that each client is different and that I would provide her with the type of therapy that she and I both feel she would benefit. Janet was asked to fill out a questionnaire that included things like what has brought her to counseling, family history of drugs, alcohol, abuse, or neglect, current relationships, religious or spiritual views.
This uestionnaire provides a baseline for the counseling session. The amount of counseling sessions that were discussed were once a week for three months at that time Janett’s care plan would be reassessed. The first key to being a good counselor is listening, this requires not only the counselor to hear what the client is saying verbal, but to listen to the client’s non-verbal cues and to listen with an open heart and mind. The following is what took place those sessions.
Background While listening to Janet, one of the first things noticed was her uneasiness when she spoke of her childhood, as she began to peak about her parents there seemed to be mixed emotions. When looking at Maslow’s hierarchy model you can tell that Janet’s basic physiological needs of food, water, warmth, rest may have been met. However, the basic need of safety and security were not met, because of her parent’s continual drug and alcohol addictions she was part of (Jarvinen, 2015, p. 07) what is “referred to as ‘chaotic families’ where children were exposed to destructive drinking patterns, violence, and lack of parental responsibility. ” Furthermore, (Jarvinen, 2015, p. 822) otes that parents like Janet’s “prioritizing their own interests over their children’s needs, abusing and hurting them, causing harm to the child- parent relationship”. Additionally (King, 2016) “adult children carry emotional baggage that make future intimate relationship difficult. ” Her safety and secure nature was further devastated, by the sexual abuse she endured her adolescents by her uncle.
It was during this time that she was still processing the growth of her psychological needs of belongingness and love the inappropriate relationship that her uncle created between imself and Janet damaged Janet’s future intimate relationships and friends. “Women that experience childhood sexual abuse are at a greater risk of developing PTSD, depression, anxiety, and substance abuse,” (Rahm, Renck, & Ringsberg, 2012). Additionally, (Rahm, Renck, & Ringsberg, 2012) women or girls that do not report sexual abuse as child due so because they were abused by family, or close friends.
Janet shows the lack of Maslow’s psychological need of self- esteem and accomplishment based on her childhood sexual abuse and her multiple divorces. Janet further shows that she as an inability to achieve long lasting intimate relationships based on her past experiences. Divorce can be structural damaging to a family emotional, mental, physically and financially. Divorce is more common in relationships where there are “cultural or ethnic differences, drug and alcohol abuse infidelity, poor communication, dishonesty, lack of respect, and personal intimate distance,” (Zandiyeh & Yousefi, 2014).
Limitation and Bias The limitations that can hinder this client-counselor relationship can be such things as lack of training, education, nd experience of the counselor in dealing with childhood sexual abuse, divorce or addiction. Lack of communication bonding between counselor and client. Janet’s lack of trusting others can be a limitation, because she may distance herself from the counselor. Janet may also be looking for a “quick fix” meaning someone to just give her answer to problems not a person that will help teach her how to find her own answers. Janet may not like the types of counseling tools or styles that the counselor uses.
If the counselor neglects Janet’s spiritual or religious requests during counseling. Finally, because Janet looks for approval, safety and security once she has established a therapeutic bond she may want to befriend the counselor outside of the professional setting. Goals The first goal for Janet is to provide her a safe environment, where she can feel comfortable so the therapeutic relationship can be built, (Hawkins & Clinton, 2015). The second goal is to help build Janet back up, because when people come into counseling they are extremely vulnerable, (McMinn, 2011).
The third goal would be to help Janet learn to love who she is as an ntire person, a counselor can then help her understand that she deserves love, respect and dignity as all human’s due. Once Janet learns to love herself from the inside/out than she will begin to see a transformation. I feel that these are equally important especially in Janet’s case because she needs to start healing from her childhood and adolescent suffering. The final goal is to help Janet confront her current suffering of addiction and divorce so she can grow to be a better individual what Maslow would describe as accomplishment under esteem psychological needs.