Can Family Issues Cause Stress - Essay Example

?The Case of Maggie Introduction Many individuals in the society today face a lot of challenges related to their growth and survival. While others struggle with economic issues, others struggle with health issues. Still, there are others who struggle with social and relationship issues. Families also pose a significant challenge to both parents and children. Many psychologists state that stress in life arises from different issues such as, work issues, exams in school, car breakages or financial issues (Regan & Gurung, 2009, P. 102). However, health psychologists assert that stress is mainly triggered by the thinking and behaviour of a person, (Vaswani, 2007, P. 24). Therefore, family issues will cause stress in one way or another since, the behaviour of the family members is directly affected. This is with regard to the case study of Maggie which this paper intends to discuss. MAGGIE’S PSYCHOLOGICAL CHARACTER TRAITS Maggie faces a lot of challenges from her family especially with the issue of having an autistic child. Since her husband is out at work most of the time, Maggie has to bear the burden of taking care of the family issues all alone. Maggie is a woman who is psychologically and emotionally strong. However, she still suffers from stress despite her strong will to solve the problems of her family. Therefore, indeed Maggie must have been deeply stressed since the doctor noted her high blood pressure. Maggie’s strong willed character manifests very clearly in Selye’s stress theory. Selye stated that a person faces stress in stages and in some stages he or she will resist the stress or rather try to live with it by ignoring it, (Vaswani, 2007, P. 24). This stage is referred to as the resistance stage. Although at this stage the individual will try to live in denial, the stress will have negative effects on him or her brain, (Brannon & Feist, 2009, P. 102). Just like in Maggie’s case, she uses defence mechanisms such as denial and escapism which in the end cause her to suffer from preeclampsia. Maggie’s way of coping through the use of denial is thus a failure, and at last she resolves to seek hospital care in order not to lose her unborn child. In the movie, an individual’s psychological health is directly related to his or her physical, mental, emotional, social and cognitive development. This is because all these are issues which are directly related to the psychological health of an individual. Psychology is about the non-physical faculties of individuals. They involve the will and the soul. Psychologists define development psychology as a discipline in science which deals with biological, social, physical and psychological aspects which combine together to affect the growth of an individual. Cognitive implications Psychologists have identified different cognitive implications that an individual manifests. Examples of implications include; memory issues, intelligence issues and problem solving tactics (Vaswani, 2007, P. 24).However, among all these, the key cognitive implication displayed by Maggie in her persistent character is intelligence. Psychological implications Maggie is affected psychologically by the difficulties that her family is facing. According to the motivation theory by Ryan and Deci (yr), motivation and self-determination usually regulate people’s behaviours thus affecting their psychology positively (Ogden, 2012, P. 43). Maggie is self-motivated and never gives up on her son despite the different challenges faced in caring for him during the young stages of his growth as at this point he needed care for proper development of mind. Maggie’s family faces a lot of challenges and thus, so does Maggie. This especially arises when the family moves into the new location where their new neighbours are not friendly. Therefore, Maggie faces the challenge of social stigmatization, which is mainly brought about by the problems caused by her autistic son. However, in the movie Maggie still comes out as a jovial and social woman who uses her humour to cover up some of her problems. Therefore, the social development of the family is slow and almost stagnated. Emotional implications Psychologists explain emotions as not only being feelings of anger and joy but as being complex feelings, which comprise of, cognition an aspect discussed in developmental theory (Nevid, 2012, P.305). Maggie loves her son deeply, and her emotions make her care for him deeply and to carry all her family’s struggles without tire. Her emotions are also displayed by her activity level despite being urged by the doctor to take a rest. Therefore, from the above development implications, it is clear that Maggie plays the role of a family role model perfectly. However, being busy with family roles and obligations, Maggie does not go through her adult fully. Psychologists define the adult stage as a phase of life where an individual mainly concentrates on career development and family stability (About.com, 2012, P. 1). Contrary for Maggie, she has succeeded in her family and household roles but still remains behind on the basis of her carrier. Family is more important than career. This is because family is about dedicating quality time to family members to ensure that benefit. However, she comes out as a role model and a real leader of the family. Unlike Simon who is rarely there for the family, Maggie is active in her family duties and responsibilities. Role of health professionals in working with families Different families in the society face different challenges and a paramedic would have to work closely with the family in order to ensure that he or she offers quality services. Therefore, paramedics will have to adapt to the different characters of their patients while on their practice. Study shows that most of the family issues today can only be solved through love, affection and advice. Thus, while dealing with these diverse family issues, paramedics have the duty to modify their services so that they fit those required by the families being served. This is extremely beneficial due to the fact the paramedics will now be able to address different family issues without difficulties. This shall bring more peace and mental stability to Maggie. It is also crucial for the paramedics to adapt their practice when working with families so that they will understand issues such as divorce, cohabitation, remarriage, stepfamilies and lone parents (Blaber, 2012, P. 130). This lessens the feeling of rejection which can result in depression. Psychological and social influences that contribute to people’s health The extent of being healthy of an individual will be affected a variety of factors, some of which are psychological and others social. For instance, an individual will be affected psychologically by the illness of his or her relative or child. Such behaviours will in turn, cause the individual’s health to deteriorate (Rodham, 2010, P. 50). In the movie, Maggie suffers from preeclampsia due to psychological effects caused by the autism in the son. Social influences also have a substantial impact on the way in which a person’s health is maintained. Taking for instance, Thomas has a difficulty in fitting into the social life of his new school. Therefore, he leads a sad and frustrated life which could lead to health problems in his life. However, with time he makes friends and manages to start over his happy life. Thomas’ social life is also influenced by his adolescent stage. Psychologists state that at the adolescence development stage, an individual will develop warm attractions towards members of the opposite sex, and will try hard to delight them (Cliff, 2011, P. 1). The research also shows that; at this age the individual is likely to be faced with anxiety disorders where he or she over reacts to situations or makes rush decisions. Thomas is also faced with all these which significantly affect his development socially. Taking for instance, he tries to hide his autistic brother from his friend, Jackie, because he is afraid he might be embarrassed. He also goes wild with anxiety and breaks his brother’s video game when his brother slightly misbehaves in front of his girlfriend. Therefore, as an adolescent he faces the trouble of fear of shame and embarrassment and need for acceptance by his fellow peers. Effects of loss on Maggie and the theory of loss that applies to her A closer analysis shows that this might be as a result of past encounter with losses. In my opinion, loss might have had both positive and negative effects on Maggie. On the positive side, loss has enabled her to be brave and live a self-dependent life. Despite her husband not being around most of the time, she still manages to lead the family well. In addition, despite her pregnancy condition she still ensures that she does all the house chores. However, on the negative side, loss has instilled fear upon Maggie. She is extremely scared that her family might fall apart, due to the challenges it is facing. Hence, she tries thoroughly to prevent this until she becomes sick. The theory that perfectly describes Maggie’s reaction to loss is Bowlby’s Attachment Theory. Bowlby states that in life, individuals sometimes develop a sense of attachment to their loved ones; such as children, partners or parents (Freeman, 2005, P. 273). In case the person they have developed an attachment to is affected by an illness or dies, they then suffer the loss effects. Study shows that such individuals are likely to suffer from emotional and psychological problems (Freeman, 2005, P. 275). While in the mourning period, Bolby’s attachment theory also states that the individual goes through stages like disorganization, anger and frustration and finally organization. In the movie, Maggie is presented as a woman who has developed an affectionate attachment to her son. The problems and challenges experienced while caring for her autistic son can be interpreted as a loss to Maggie. Therefore, just as the theory states, Maggie goes through the phase of frustrations especially when trying to make everything appear normal in the family. However, with time the situation becomes a little bit lighter due to acceptance of the loss. Positive copying strategies or elements of resilience demonstrated by Maggie Psychologists define resilience as the concept of withstanding difficulties and challenges of life with an optimistic view and hoping that crises will be resolved with time. Study shows that parents with disabled children suffer a lot of challenges relating to coping with the child and family difficulties (Heiman, 2002, P. 160). Therefore, most of these parents are reported to gain composure by use of resilience strategies. Maggie uses resilient elements such as optimism and hope in the future of her child. She has a strong belief that; despite the various challenges he experiences in his growth, he can still grow into a responsible man if given sufficient care and love. At one instance, he tells his younger son, Thomas, that even though Charlie is not able to take care of himself, he is also a child like any other and thus needs to be shown love too. Another resilient element used by Maggie is her character of a self-confident woman, her exceptional sense of humour and her joy and love for her children. Maggie embraces Charlie and offers him all her affection and warmth. She also uses the coping strategy of feeling able and self-reliant (Healey, 2002, P. 1). She tries to bear or rather handle all the family issues involved in the house without seeking help from her husband. However, in effect she ends up being overwhelmed by her responsibilities such that she worsens the familial predicaments instead of reducing them. Cultural aspects in the movie and their effect on Maggie Different parenting skills usually originate from within the parents themselves or sometimes they learn them from different parents. However, most parenting skills are also shaped by the cultures of the family or previous norms followed in the family lineage (Deanne, 2010, P. 10). Therefore, cultural background of an individual profoundly affects the parental strategies that are used (Usher, 2012, P. 7). In the movie, Maggie is presented as an immigrant parent since the family is new in the neighbourhood. Studies show that immigrant parents lead the family and bring up their children on the basis of a culture that is full of expectations. Hence, they mostly communicate values of motivation to their children. When Thomas becomes downcast and discouraged at school due to inability to interact with his peers, his mother motivates him and immediately makes him feel better. The DVD also brings out the culture of parental respect and familial love. To Maggie, love among family members should be a culture and an obligation for all to follow. Maggie builds her family through love, appreciation, care and affection for each other. In spite of the fact that the DVD does not give a variety of relationships between Maggie and other people, this can be explained by the fact that the family is new in the area and thus, it has not yet made any friends. However, the family keeps its culture of staying together despite the challenges it faces. Effect of Maggie’s age on her behaviours Maggie and Simon seem to be a couple that has been married for not more than 18 years. A deeper analysis could also conclude that most probably the family has not faced a lot of challenges since it started. This is mainly illustrated by Maggie’s apprehension and depression when she faces the familial challenges. She is not keened in the decisions she makes and is at times overwhelmed by the negative results of her struggle. Taking for instance, when Charlie messes up the floor mat in his bedroom, Maggie almost burst into tears while addressing Thomas. Maggie can also be judged as a young parent with remarkably little experience on life’s issues. This is deduced from her fragile personality and her anxiety in terms of little issues. She is overwhelmed by her family duties until she forgets all about her own needs. Contrary, an experienced and mature parent would know how to balance both familial issues, and self-development needs (Vaswani, 2007, P. 18). To some extent, she can also be judged as lazy and disorganized. Taking for instance, at one time her younger son finds her eating on the bed while still wearing her shoes. As the movie ends, we also see that she still screams at Thomas to help in the house chores. Her tendency to solve issues with screams and yells can also be translated as immaturity and irresponsibility. Thus, despite Maggie’s strong will in carrying out her familial roles, she still has shortcomings of using the wrong solution strategies. Consequently, Maggie does not set an admirable example to her children, and this could affect her family negatively (Vaswani, 2007, P. 24). Study shows that parents in their mid thirties will either be busy developing their carriers, or will be mastering on their parenting skills (Cliff, 2012, P. 1). However, studying Maggie’s life keenly, one can notice that her life does not follow that direction. Her life is only concentrated on her family issues of which, she does not even do an excellent job in the family but almost messes up things further. Relationships and social networks demonstrated in the DVD As stated before, the movie starts when Maggie’s family has just moved into a new neighbourhood and hence, it the family members have not yet familiarized themselves with the neighbours. However, when the two sons start school, they are able to make friends in school and build social networks. The relationship between Jackie and Thomas plays a particularly significant role in Thomas’ life as it helps him to start accepting his brother. Before the friendship starts, Thomas is ashamed of walking with his autistic brother to school, but after Jackie urges him to refrain from wishing that his brother was normal, he is now able to walk with him without feeling shy or embarrassed. Study shows that social network diversities are affected by factors such as gender, education level, social economic status and personal attitudes (Marisol & Diane, 2004, P. 293). In its new neighbourhood, Maggie’s family is influenced by these factors and thus, it is not able to easily fit in to the new neighbourhood. The neighbours also seem to be unfriendly since, they have already reported to the authorities about Charlie’s noise. The family is visited by representatives from the Youth and Community Service stating that they have reports from neighbours complains about Charlie. Therefore, it is clear that the reports between the family and its neighbours is not about to be upright, especially after Simon yells at the neighbour concerning the visit. Such issues materially affect the social networks formed by the family since; it can only be in good terms with only persons who also accept their autistic son. Conclusion The movie ‘The Black Balloon’ clearly brings out most of the challenges that families in the current society face. Focusing on Maggie, the movie portrays Maggie as a courageous but slightly naive and immature woman, yet strong willed and fully dedicated to her family. Despite being strong willed, Maggie resolves to the wrong coping strategies which only lead to her preeclampsia. However, Maggie still plays an extremely crucial role in bringing out the ways in which a child suffering from autism should be handled. Study shows that children with autism should be treated with care and love. In addition, their intense emotions should be solved wisely (Nadargan, 2012, P. 1). Therefore, as a caring and loving mother, Maggie is excellent. However, she should learn on how to balance her family roles with her own private life. She should work on setting an excellent example for her two sons by reducing the yelling and screaming. References About.com, 2012, Cognitive Psychology.Psychology - Complete Guide to Psychology for Students, Educators & Enthusiasts. 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