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Michiels 1 Assignment #1: Genogram Emma Michiels Department of Social Work, Boston University SSW CP 772 O1: Clinical Practices with Families Professor Marci Morris January 29th, 2023

Michiels 2 Introduction This paper aims to Identify generational patterns, dominant worldview messages, and institutions affecting my family and the system. By creating a genogram, I can better understand how beliefs, ideals, and thoughts are passed down through my family system and that system has been affected by its ecosystem. Patterns, Themes, and Observations about Family System What surprised me about my genogram were some aspects I didn’t know about, such as parts of my family. My mom has a brother named Rob, who never came around or spent quality family time with us. This was a big unknown in my genogram. Because they aren’t close, my mom doesn’t know alot about her brother. Another unknown of my family is my dad-sides mental health status. My dad is open about his depression. However, his dad and mother never mentioned to me if they had ever sought out therapy or any form of mental health care. I would want to see if this was a generational pattern on my dad's side, but I can’t confirm that without further information. Information readily available to me was about my parents and brother, as I spent a lot of time with them growing up, and we were all very close. My parents have always been very open individuals and talk about their struggles with depression and anxiety. I was initially told more negative information as I was the oldest. I knew when my brother needed more support or was required to go to therapy or even go on medication for his OCD. My brother developed OCD during elementary school, which manifested in his need for space and for his body to be clean.

Michiels 3 Some of the patterns I noticed throughout my family are 1) Mental Health Diagnosis, 2) Alcoholism, and 3) Eating Disorders. Looking at my genogram, my paternal grandmother, my father, and I are compulsive eaters. My dad and I would classify as binge eaters, and my grandmother is anorexic. I am curious about whether this pattern was learned through my paternal grandmother's eating habits and caused my father to have an unhealthy relationship with food. This could have affected his eating habits, which I saw as a child growing up and influenced me. My father also disclosed to me that there were family members on his dad’s side who struggled with addiction. That pattern is unclear in the genogram as those members are not included. However, my maternal grandfather, Frank, has a history of alcohol abuse, which elicits a pattern that could affect Emma and Garrett’s habits. Lastly, There is a pattern of depression and anxiety within the family system as well. Emma’s fear stems from her anxious attachment style. However, it is unknown what each family member’s depression or anxiety stems from. Although this family system is close, they keep some defenses and topics private. This pattern would need further exploration in therapy sessions. When creating and looking at the genogram I made, I realized my family has some complicated dynamics involved. Although there are many close relationships within the family system, there were more distant relationships between “Roz” and other family members (Debbie and Emma). When thinking about why the relationships are distant, there was a time when the client, Emma, was very malleable to outside information about food, eating habits, and diet culture. During that time, Emma decided to try eating healthier, which means for a teenage girl to eat less or be in a caloric deficit. This was something that she didn’t know could be harmful. Noting that Roz has a history of an eating disorder, she felt compelled to help Emma. The situation created some distance between their once close relationship due to her trying to control

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Michiels 4 Emma and what she was doing. Debbie also has a more distant relationship with Roz. When Rob and Debbie were dating, there were a lot of instances where Roz would come off as rude or make comments that were not kind. Because Debbie and Emma were close, they shared their negative experiences with Roz with each other, which created further animosity between both relational ties. My question is, “Did Emma’s mother pass down some of her dislike for Roz and cause further distance?” Institutional Factors, Dominant worldview messages, or cultural factors My family are all white presenting individuals, my dad's side being Jewish and my mother's side being Italian Roman Catholic. My mother and father received some resistance in their marriage due to the difference in religious background in the forms of family conversations and having trouble finding a home in certain towns. My father has generational trauma from his family being a part of the Holocaust, and with the state of the world, he urges us to be careful in sharing that we are Jewish. This promotes identity issues within the children as they can’t freely express who they are to those around them. On my mom’s side, my grandfather had difficulty making ends meet. He often would have multiple jobs, such as running a hot dog stand, working at a jewelry store, being a fireman, and being a window washer. He worked hard to provide for his family but didn’t always have time to spend with his kids, which meant my mother had a distant father. My grandfather on my mother's side (Frank) was of a different class than my father's parents (Will & Roz). In addition, Rob and Debbie both exceeded their own family in class and were able to provide a bountiful life for their children and give back to their parents. Debbie bought a house for her parents to support them financially, which can complicate family relationships or help them grow.

Michiels 5 Conclusion A genogram may help someone understand their own family by highlighting critical relationships in the family system that are close or distant and bring about old memories or explore patterns that might be useful for the client to explore or solve a problem they are experiencing. As a clinician, I would like to ask a family some questions: 1) Who is in their family? 2)What are some critical relationship ties in that family? 3) Are those family members close or distant, and why? 4) Any familial history of importance (i.e., health, mental health, etc.); 5) How were you cared for as an infant?; 6) what was life like as a child in your family? 6) What systems were the families involved in, and how does that affect generational trauma? Overall, Genograms are helpful tools that help clinicians accurately diagnose/assess family problems. I would use a genogram for my notes to keep track of meaningful family relationships and to see patterns I could help address with the client when the client is ready to speak about those patterns verbally (Hanna, 2018).

Michiels 6 References : Hanna, S. M. (2018). The Practice of Family Therapy (5th ed.). Taylor & Francis. https://bookshelf.vitalsource.com/books/9781351051446

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