The Ageism - Assignment Example

Assignment Wk 7 There are many influences through the generations that may become a part of the counseling session. The media portrays older people as being frail and unhealthy which is sometimes the way that many people perceive anyone who is old. In families, there can be intergenerational problems that may come to the counseling session. As an example, families sometimes deal with a misunderstanding between generations. A teenager may want to start dating while the parents or grandparents feel they should not start dating until they are 16 instead of 13 or 14. Ageism is a fact of life that many people have to deal with whether they are working or retired. As an example, an older person may not be hired for some jobs because the younger generation boss may not see the value of having an older worker on the job. Since the media portrays the elderly as senile and problematic, it is difficult for them to get away from ageism. As Sue and Sue suggest, "ageism influences how both the general public and mental health professionals perceive older people" (p, 456). This is why it can be difficult for older people to be heard by their families because the family sometimes thinks it knows about the needs of the elderly person better than they know themselves. Physical limitations can also be a challenge for the elderly. These limitations must be taken into consideration when someone comes into the counseling office. It is important for the counselor to make sure their office is barrier free. They should take into consideration the type of communication that works best for their client with a disability, make sure that lighting is adequate and making sure they are hearing and understanding what is going on in the session (Sue and Sue, p. 457). Assignment 2 Wk 7 The culture of disability is different for each person who is disabled. As an example, a blind person will have different needs than someone who is deaf. Someone with physical disabilities will have different needs than those with mood disorders. However, each one is put under the category of "disability". Within the culture, each type of disability has certain characteristics and issues that are specific to that particular disability. There are many ways that the culture of disability is similar to other cultures. As an example, many people with disabilities are discriminated against because of their disability. Some people think that disabled people drain society because they are not working and contributing to society (Sue and Sue, p. 488). There are negative stereotypes that disabled people have to deal with and the attitudes and feelings towards them that society holds can be difficult for people with disability. The unique issues will depend on the disability. As an example, an individual who is blind, will need to have someone to help them know where things are located in a room that is unfamiliar. Someone who is deaf may or may not need a sign language interpreter to help with communication. In counseling and therapy, it is important for the counselor to know programs that are available for people with disabilities. They should know rehabilitation programs as well as those that can provide benefits. Sue and Sue suggest that "ratings of life satisfaction among individuals with disabilities tended to be lower than those for people without disabilities" (p. 492).Therapists should also be educated in the area of sexuality and reproduction because many people with disabilities have these areas as concerns. Wk 8 Assignment 1 When an individual has any type of belief system, whether it is a religion or other faith, it can be an intrinsic part of who they are and it can definitely influence the way they perceive the world. The challenge for the counselor can be that an individual has a different belief system than they do and they have to respect the clients religion. As an example, Sue and Sue explained the ritual of "sudden death syndrome" that was a tradition of Hmong people. The syndrome was primarily deadly to men in the first two years of their arrival in the United States (p. 210). They point out that many of these situations do not have a DSM category to put them in so they give a "culture bound syndrome" to identify them. These types of "disorders" would be important to understand because many of them are local terms that have something to do with a belief system or religion. One of the challenges to counseling is that people must understand the differences between peoples religions and the aspects of culture bound syndromes because so that mistakes are not made. As an example, in Vangs case, the story that Sue and Sue told, showed that Vang might have been seen as a schizophrenic and been given a variety of antipsychotic drugs (Sue and Sue, p. 213). This case showed the dangers of what can happen if counselors are not cognizant of the fact that religion and belief systems can be very different from their own. Katie had a different situation because she was dealing with two different religions: Catholicism and Jewish. Both of these state that the children should be brought up in the faith and this was difficult for her to please everyone. This would be difficult to counsel a client on because they would have to ultimately make their own decisions. What I would do in this situation is explore more with the client the aspects of the religion that were most important to them. As I identified this situation, it would give me a better idea of how to work with them. I understand that I would have to step away from my belief system to accept what they are saying so that I would not judge them if they were very different. In the situation with the Vang, I would attempt to help him come to terms with his grief that would be apparent because of the sudden death syndrome information. Assignment 2 Week 8 I grew up as the older daughter in a middle class family and there are certain things that are expected out of girls in a Hispanic family. As an example, we are expected to get married and have many children. The social patterns in our culture frown upon a woman who will be successful in her own right and not be secondary to men. I feel as though I have been born into a Hispanic family, but there are many other influences that are a part of who I am. There is the school culture that I am currently in that means that I must produce grades of a certain caliber in order to make sure that I receive the degree that I want. I also live a middle class lifestyle that I hope will become stronger as I move out into the community with my degree. As the oldest girl, I have also been raised in the United States and am aware of both sides of the traditional Hispanic requirement for first generation Hispanics as well as the challenges that can happen because of the differences in the way the world is today and how Hispanic people are breaking the barriers that were once a part of traditional Hispanic culture. We were raised as Catholic and I agree with Sue and Sue that many Hispanic people believe that "you should endure wrongs done against you" which means that "many Hispanics have difficulty behaving assertively" (p. 382). I have seen this in my family and in working with other people. And I have had to learn to be more assertive. In my counseling practice I would think that one of the themes that would come up may be challenges with status change, which his very difficult for some immigrants. As an example, many doctors or lawyers from other countries come to the United States but cannot practice their profession in the United States unless they obtain a degree from this country. I would think that some of the people I would counsel would have similar circumstances that Anthony had. As an example, the people who would come to this country and have to live with their families to make ends meet. In my practice, I can see where my middle class upbringing would come into play to help these clients. As an example, my family, though we majorly identify with Hispanic, we are really a bit of many different cultures. As Hays (2008) suggests, "the term Hispanic combines into one ethnicity the various cultures of Central American Indians, South Americans of African and Spanish heritage, Mexican Americans, Cuban Americans, Puerto Ricans and Dominicans" (p. 13). This in itself suggests that there will be a variety of people dealing with all of their ethnicities as the come to the counseling arena. I also can see how religion would play a part in answering the questions for my clients. Some may be in a situation like Katie where they were raised Catholic, but where they have someone they marry who is of a different religion. I think that Thomas and Schwarzbaum (2006) make a good point when they say that "clinicians may become overwhelmed by working with clients who were socialized in two different religious traditions" p. 236) because I think this would be difficult for anyone to help sort out. Many religions, as in Katies place expect that the children will be brought up in that faith and it would take strength from the client for them to be able to go against either one of the faiths. I also think that my religion sometimes plays a part in how I perceive other people but I fell that a good counselor divorces themselves from preconceived notions that are based on their religion. They must do this in order to do the best job for their clients. As an example, if a counselor has someone come to their office who wants counseling on abortion, and the counselor is Catholic, they must think about what the best course for the client is rather than their own comfort. By doing so, they can give their client the pros and cons of each action References Sue, D.W. and Sue, D. (2008). Counseling the culturally diverse: Theory and practice. 5th Ed. NJ: John Wiley & Sons. Thomas, A. J., & Schwarzbaum, S. (2006). "Anthonys Story" in Culture and identity: Life stories for counselors and therapists. P. 263–279. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications. Thomas, A. J., & Schwarzbaum, S. (2006). "Katies Story" in Culture and identity: Life stories for counselors and therapists. pp. 217–237. 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