Week 9 Discussion

Main Discussion

Substance Abuse and Intervention

When a family member is suffering from any type of substance abuse, this may have a negative effect on the family as a whole. There are a number of ways for families to deal with a family member’s substance abuse that is typically unhealthy or dysfunctional. This depends on who is abusing the substance. If it is a parent with the substance abuse issue, children will typically act out in school by getting into trouble or bullying. In most cases, depending on the age of the child, they do not know who to tell or how to express what is going on at home. Depending on the nature of the substance abuse and those that are involved, in some circumstances children are taken away and put into foster care when other family members are not able to care for the children.

When parents abuse drugs or alcohol, the children can end up in a quagmire. They often adopt a role which helps the family, but they may get stuck in the role and neglect their own needs; this is particularly true with older children. One of these roles is the scapegoat. According to Gladding (2015) the scapegoat is “often a child who attempts to distract the family focus away from the substance abuser by acting out in a disruptive manner and being blamed for the family’s problems.” Additionally, this individual believes it is their fault when things go wrong. The faults of this individual are focused on, which presents a distraction for the family and the real issues at hand. As a result this individual will appear to be rebellious, troublesome, lawbreaking, tough…..and may be at risk of abusing drugs or alcohol themselves. Internally, this individual is frequently full of hurt, fear, loneliness, and rejection, feeling angry at the injustice of how they are being treated (Gladding, 2015).

Although there are various interventions, the one evidence based intervention that I would utilize for this family would be the Adlerian Therapy. This type of therapy is a positive approach that provides encouragement to the client as well as their family. It is intended to augment the social concerns of the family members, mostly those who are most affected by the abuse. According to Gladding (2015), “one way to increase social interest and consequently the health and functioning of the family is to work with the parents and children in multiple ways….this perspective is to get parents involved in a group that helps increase their self-esteem as well as their skill.” The benefit of make use of the Adlerian Therapy is that it is especially acclimatized and can be utilized anytime with almost anyone. It educates individuals that they control their own destiny. Clients are evaluated by looking at past experiences that may have caused them to act in a particular way. The focus is also on the client as a whole (mind, body, soul), with the objective of overcoming issues by readjusting their lifestyle (Gladding, 2015).

Domestic Violence and Intervention

Domestic violence does not discriminate and can happen to anyone, regardless of race, gender, age, religion, or sexual orientation. Domestic violence can be characterized as a pattern of behaviors in an intimate relationship that is designed to gain or maintain control or power over the other individual in the relationship. This includes any behavior that is meant to threaten, manipulate, terrify, disgrace, harm, blame, wound or injure someone. Additionally, it can happen to individuals who are dating, married, or living together, and affects individuals regardless of their level of education or socioeconomic background. Domestic violence not only affects the individual at the other end of the abuse, but also affects other members of the family, especially children. When children live with domestic violence, they are experiencing trauma. This can be continual and constant. This form of violence can thwart a child’s brain from developing normally; this affects every part of their functioning. Over time the effects build up and can have an impact on every phase of their development. These affects include behavior, development, relationships, emotions, learning, and cognition (Gladding, 2015).

“Once an evaluation of domestic violence has been completed, an assortment of treatment options is offered, including those that are individually, group, educationally, and family systems focused” (Gladding, 2015). However, the evidence-based intervention I would use is the Intimate Justice theory. This theory is a set of nine interconnected models that depict the ethical elements of equality, fairness, and care in relationships that are ongoing. Understanding ethical scope entails looking at internalized values and actions in terms of their inspiration and impact on the partner, particularly as they disempower, empower, or abuse power. The thought behind intimate justice theory is to confront the abuse of power and disempowerment, to explore how internalized ideas were developed throughout experiences within the family origins, to confront internalized attitudes on how couples should treat each other, and to develop a consciousness of the connection between couple abuse and social inequality. Intimate Justice Theory looks at all facets of the abuse, like family history and the abusers way of thinking. It also has the therapist utilizing the three concepts of intimate justice theory; respect, freedom, and accountability; to organize the opening stage of treatment for violence and abuse. This approach works best when both partners voluntarily enter into therapy and truly want to get to the bottom of the issue of abuse and work through it together (Gladding, 2015).

Reference

Gladdings, S. T. (2015). Family Therapy: History, Theory, and Practice. (6th ed.). Boston, MA: Pearson