Deborah and Samuel have been married for 25 years, and they have three teenagers: Angie, age 19, Leah, age 17, and Nicholas, age 16. Deborah and Samuel have had marital problems most of their marriage but they decided to stick it out together for the sake of the children. Deborah is not working outside of the home now and Samuel complains that she needs to find a job since he cannot continue to sustain the whole family on his own. The Robins are struggling financially with Samuel being the only earner. The couple has been fighting lately, and Deborah complains that their fights have increasingly escalated in intensity. She fears Samuel may get physically abusive with her during one of their fights. Samuel states that he is not happy in this marriage, and that he feels depressed at times and so angry with others that he struggles to maintain his cool with Deborah and the children. Angie is living on her own and has just informed her parents that she is pregnant by her boyfriend Rob whom she has been dating for the last 6 months. Deborah is very upset about this since she feels that Rob may not be the best man for Angie and she knows that Angie is not ready to be a mother. Deborah thinks Angie may be repeating some of the mistakes Deborah has made. On the other hand, Deborah's religious faith makes it impossible for her to imagine that Angie would consider terminating the pregnancy. One of Deborah's strengths is her passion for children. She had been a teacher before and been very invested as a mother. She fears that she may be in the position of raising another child soon. Leah spends a lot of time with boys and with girlfriends, too. She feels peer pressure to be sexually active but believes she shouldn't give in to man's sexual desires. Her religious beliefs also reinforce the idea that she should be abstinent. Both Deborah and Samuel fear that Leah may follow her sister's footsteps and become sexually active too early. Nicholas is somewhat shy and has a learning disability. He has been diagnosed with ADD and has been struggling academically. His teacher has already told his parents that if he does not progress he may need to be retained this year. At this time, he is not taking medication. Nicholas is quite mature for his age and is closer to Deborah than his father since she seems more attuned to his feelings and struggles as an adolescent. Nicholas is the "sensitive one," according to his parents. He worries about his parents' disagreements and fears that they may end up separated. Following their pastor's recommendation, the whole family has agreed to seek family counseling. Clinical Activity: As a strategic family therapist, what issues would you want to know more about? What do you think you would address first?
Deborah and Samuel have been married for 25 years, and they have three teenagers: Angie, age 19, Leah, age 17, and Nicholas, age 16. Deborah and Samuel have had marital problems most of their marriage but they decided to stick it out together for the sake of the children. Deborah is not working outside of the home now and Samuel complains that she needs to find a job since he cannot continue to sustain the whole family on his own. The Robins are struggling financially with Samuel being the only earner. The couple has been fighting lately, and Deborah complains that their fights have increasingly escalated in intensity. She fears Samuel may get physically abusive with her during one of their fights. Samuel states that he is not happy in this marriage, and that he feels depressed at times and so angry with others that he struggles to maintain his cool with Deborah and the children.
Angie is living on her own and has just informed her parents that she is pregnant by her boyfriend Rob whom she has been dating for the last 6 months. Deborah is very upset about this since she feels that Rob may not be the best man for Angie and she knows that Angie is not ready to be a mother. Deborah thinks Angie may be repeating some of the mistakes Deborah has made. On the other hand, Deborah's religious faith makes it impossible for her to imagine that Angie would consider terminating the pregnancy. One of Deborah's strengths is her passion for children. She had been a teacher before and been very invested as a mother. She fears that she may be in the position of raising another child soon.
Leah spends a lot of time with boys and with girlfriends, too. She feels peer pressure to be sexually active but believes she shouldn't give in to man's sexual desires. Her religious beliefs also reinforce the idea that she should be abstinent. Both Deborah and Samuel fear that Leah may follow her sister's footsteps and become sexually active too early.
Nicholas is somewhat shy and has a learning disability. He has been diagnosed with ADD and has been struggling academically. His teacher has already told his parents that if he does not progress he may need to be retained this year. At this time, he is not taking medication. Nicholas is quite mature for his age and is closer to Deborah than his father since she seems more attuned to his feelings and struggles as an adolescent. Nicholas is the "sensitive one," according to his parents. He worries about his parents' disagreements and fears that they may end up separated.
Following their pastor's recommendation, the whole family has agreed to seek family counseling.
Clinical Activity:
As a strategic family therapist, what issues would you want to know more about? What do you think you would address first?
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