Prof C: Learning Issues Assignment

Posted: January 4th, 2023

Prof C: Learning Issues Assignment

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Prof C: Learning Issues Assignment

Introduction

The study dwells on Nadia’s case study and uses it to show how several factors may influence an intervention process. The paper begins with a personal reaction to the case study, and the section argues that a suitable way to help the affected persons is to seek the appropriate interventions. The first section shows that the affected individuals should not shy away from seeking intervention because this may offer the chance to identify the root cause of the problem and come up with effective responses. The second section illustrates the importance of embracing the most suitable reactions while attending to the patients and avoiding intense reactions that could cause more hopelessness to the patients seeking for assistance. The third section explores the various self-care strategies social care strategies I would use to apply suitable reactions and avoid vicarious trauma. The descriptions in all these sections suggest that patients should not hesitate to seek assistance. At the same time, the therapists should apply the most suitable measures to help patients come over their challenges. 

Personal Reactions

Dealing with people who exhibit behavioral problems may be difficult, which may have far much more adverse effects than anticipated. Nadia shows behavioral issues that do affect not only her but also affects her mother and everyone around her. Her failure to attend school regularly at the beginning of the year and her increased unpredicted mood creates so much worry. Another precise instance showing that Nadia requires support to overcome a behavioral problem is when she cannot say anything about a fire that breaks out in one of the rooms. Nadia’s condition causes vicarious trauma to those around her, particularly her mother, Jamila Tehrani, her mother’s sister, Yasmin Amirpour, and her siblings. Nadia’s providers may experience vicarious trauma, especially when they cannot help the child and do not experience progressive growth and transformation. The people who surround Nadia may develop vicarious trauma or secondary trauma or secondary victimization because of the challenges they encounter while handling the child. Tehrani is likely to develop secondary victimization because her daughter has a problem, and the sacrifices she has to make to ensure Nadia does not get into trouble. Tehrani is also likely to develop secondary trauma when she considers the difficulties her child would encounter. Amirpour may experience vicarious trauma because of the empathetic feelings she may experience when her sister and sister’s child have some challenges. Necessary intervention is required as soon as possible to save the affected persons from experiencing unnecessary stereotyping and bias that could further affect their wellbeing. 

Self-bias and social stereotyping may worsen the victim’s situation without identifying the root of the problem and taking suitable measures to restore normalcy. Based on Nadia’s case, finding ways of helping Nadia by first understanding why she behaves abnormally may save her mother, Amirpour, and siblings from experiencing secondary trauma because of the unexplained and worrying behaviors. Tehrani should visit a therapist as soon as possible and find out why her child behaves abnormally, which may be a significant milestone in addressing the issue of vicarious trauma. Seeking intervention will allow Tehrani to know that traumatic encounters vary considerably and that every traumatic encounter is composed of changing traumatic situations and moments (NCTSN, 2010). The contacts may entail varying measures of traumatizing events such as severe injury, death, physical violation, or any other form of life-threatening encounters. Tehrani may use the information to trace whether Nadia has experienced any fatal encounters or breaches in the past that could hurt her feelings and use the finding to take appropriate measures. Seeking guidance will also allow the parent to understand that trauma surfaces within a broad context that encompasses the child’s life experiences, present circumstances, and personal characteristics (NCTSN, 2010). The Child-intrinsic features that could subject a child to trauma include a prior encounter with trauma and prior engagement psychopathology.

In contrast, the child-extrinsicfactors that could cause injury include the surrounding cultural, community, familial and physical environments. Based on these descriptions, Nadia may be exhibiting behavioral issues because of the lack of a fatherly figure in the house because the case does not mention her father’s existence and because of the financial constraints back at home. Knowing the cause of the problem will offer the individuals suffering vicarious trauma know how to address the concern, and possibly avoid the biasness and stereotyping that comes with such emotional and behavioral challenges. 

Impact of Reaction as a Social Worker

The reactions a social worker displays may either help the affected person or worsening their situation. If I were a social worker, I would try to avoid reactions that may cause increased fears in the patients and embrace responses that create courage and optimism. I know that displaying harsh reactions would scare the patients, worsen their situation, and possibly develop fear in seeking future intervention. I will avoid irritation while attending to patients such as Nadia, who displays evident signs of behavioral problems and Tehrani, Amirpour, and Nadia’s siblings, who are likely to develop vicarious trauma because of a family members acts abnormally. Instead, I would try to be calm and approach them in a friendly way, so they feel free to give their stories. I will always show appreciation for patients’ attempts to deal with the problem and avoid worrying that they are not doing enough to overcome the difficulty. I, for instance, would welcome Amirpour, Tehrani, and her daughter to the health facility and tell them that they have taken a bold step in addressing their health concerns. I will try to eradicate feelings of hopelessness that may sometimes hinder a social worker from giving their best, especially if the patients exhibit adverse signs, worsening situations, or when intervention does not respond appropriately (Tentama, Mulasari, Sukesi & Haryono, 2014). I know embracing and applying the most suitable reactions will provide more opportunities to tackle the issues the patients present. 

I would stick to the suitable reactions and do away with the adverse features because this may address the cognitive, emotional, and social challenges the patients may display while seeking intervention. Applying suitable reaction measures would allow me to understand and deal with the psychological constraints associated with trauma and behavioral problems such as powerlessness and helplessness, numbness, anxiety, fear, and emotional unpredictability (Wesel, Boeije, Alisic & Drost, 2011). I am confident that instilling the right reactions while attending to the patients, which in this case are , Nadia, Amirpour and Nadia’s siblings will help to address the social symptoms such as loneliness, distrust, withdrawal, and decreased interest in social activities more effectively (Wesel, Boeije, Alisic & Drost, 2011). Applying the suitable reactions while dealing with the issues the patients present will make it easier and more convenient for me to offer appropriate solutions to the cognitive complications such as racing thoughts, the repetitive occurrence of traumatizing events and hardships in concentrating that the affected persons are likely to display (Lerias & Byrne, 2003). I am confident that applying the suitable reactions and avoiding intense reactions will provide me with more insight into how to improve how I attend to the patients. 

Self-Care Strategies to Manage Intense Reactions and Vicarious Trauma

I would take several precautions while serving as a social worker to evade possible instances of intense reactions and vicarious trauma. One of the most effective measures I would apply is to interact with as many practitioners as possible and find out how they manage their reactions and know the approaches that patients appreciate the most. I, for example, wish to find out from other professionals in the field whether they regard patience and control over emotions as suitable ways of managing intense reactions and avoiding vicarious trauma. I wish to inquire from other practitioners how they incorporate patience in their work because Lerias and Byrne (2003) assert that as a counselor, one should not be so fast in their judgment and should be ready to listen. I have the interest to learn how other specialists control their emotions for the reason that Lerias and Byrne (2003) believe that trauma therapists handle very emotional experiences and topics, and should show adequate control over their feelings to avoid developing extreme attitudes and becoming overwhelmed by the issues the patients face. Also, I plan to obtain information from several sources that may help me to manage intense reactions as well as avoid vicarious trauma. For instance, I will retrieve data from online sources that give various data on how to handle harsh reactions and how to prevent vicarious trauma. I will attend professional training such as those offered by the International Society for the Study of Trauma and Dissociation (ISSTD) where I will get so much valuable information on how to go about my work while avoiding incidences that may affect performance or lead to an undesirable outcome. Trauma therapists need specific working experiences with different populations that have encountered crime, violence, accident or abuse, and this encourages me to pursue further training to gain more insight into how frameworks such as the vicarious trauma toolkit model that offers a new way of assessing and conceptualizing the effects of secondary trauma and the responses and encounters of service providers may enhance my reactions and help me avoid vicarious trauma (Office for Victims of Crime, 2020). I know the initiatives to strengthen my responses and to prevent me from developing secondary trauma will have a substantial impact on how I handle forthcoming matters.

I will consider other recommended other strategies that may help a social worker prevent secondary injury and use several measures. For example, I will take proper steps to take care of myself by getting adequate time to rest and eat foods that would help me avoid evil thoughts that could accumulate to secondary trauma (Sui & Padmanabhanunni, 2016). I also plan to take enough time for myself by taking enough breaks to relax my mind. I will regulate intense reactions and avoid secondary trauma by limiting myself as much as possible and ensuring that I maintain suitable boundaries with the clients. Observing enough restrictions and keeping appropriate distance will prevent me from becoming overindulged in matters that would subject me to high levels of secondary trauma (Sui & Padmanabhanunni, 2016). Above all, I will try to compose myself anytime I attend to a patient suffering from anxiety disorders and refrain from being overwhelmed by the nature of the case, or any fatalities that may occur while attending to the patients (Sui & Padmanabhanunni, 2016). I am optimistic the strategies will yield the anticipated results, but I plan to explore more suitable approaches as I continue with my learning and practice.

Conclusion

The study urges patients suffering from behavioral and anxiety disorders to seek assistance from qualified social workers who use suitable intervention mechanisms to suggest possible solutions to the problem. Tehrani should identify the root cause of Nadia’s problems to know where to begin addressing the issue, lest she and others become victims of vicarious trauma. The paper shows how it is essential for a social worker to embrace suitable reactions while handling their patients to restore confidence and optimism rather than displaying attitudes that instill fear and uncertainty. The study illustrates the importance of identifying and using suitable self-care strategies that offer the chance to improve how caregivers manage intense reactions and avoid vicarious trauma. Seeking advice and learning lessons from other professionals, and acquiring information from various reliable sources may help to achieve the desired results. 

References

Lerias, D., & Byrne, M. (2003). Vicarious traumatization: Symptoms and predictors. Stress and Health, 19(3), 129-138.

NCTSN. (2010). The 12 core concepts: Concepts for understanding traumatic stress responses in children and families. Los Angeles: NCTSN.

Office for Victims of Crime. (2020). The vicarious trauma toolkit. Retrieved from https://vtt.ovc.ojp.gov/what-is-vicarious-trauma

Sui, X., & Padmanabhanunni, A. (2016). Vicarious trauma: The psychological impact of working with survivors of trauma for South African psychologists. Journal of Psychology in Africa, 26(2), 127-133.

Tentama, F., Mulasari, S., Sukesi, T., & Haryono, W. (2014). The effectiveness of trauma healing methods to reduce post-traumatic stress depression disorder (PTSD) on teenage victims of Mount Merapi eruption. International Journal of Research Studies in Psychology, 3(3), 101-111.

Wesel, F., Boeije, H., Alisic, E., & Drost, S. (2011). I’ll be working my way back: A qualitative synthesis on the trauma experience of children. Psychological Trauma: Theory, Research, Practice and Policy, 4(5), 516-526.