Preview

Terminal Illness Impact on Family Functioning and Bowenian Therapy

Powerful Essays
Open Document
Open Document
2485 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Terminal Illness Impact on Family Functioning and Bowenian Therapy
Terminal Illness Impact on Family Functioning and Bowenian Therapy

Abstract
This paper will discuss the adjustments that accompany terminal illness within a family setting. The methods that are applied in the theory of choice will be explored as to whether the treatment is appropriate for this type of tragedy. The compatibility of this theory and this issue will be explored when dealing with the family unit.

Terminal Illness Impact and Bowenian Therapy A family is two or more people who consider themselves family and who assume obligations, functions, and responsibilities generally essential to healthy family life. (Barker, 1999. p.155). Families create patterns that are passed on from grandparents to parents and from parents to children. These become the traditions and part of the value systems that are instilled in the lives of all that are involved. Murray Bowen developed his views of theory pertaining to family systems theory. His view is a theory of human behavior that views the family as an emotional unit and uses systems thinking to describe the complex interactions in the unit. (www.thebowencenter.org/pages/theory.html).
His perspective of the family as a whole having an impact on each individual family member was also shared by many of his colleagues. The objective was to work with the family to understand that unresolved conflict with our original families is the most important unfinished business of our lives. He started out working with mother and child, and then he added fathers to the equation. (Nicholas & Schwartz. 2009, p.138). The interactions between family members generate how a crisis is handled. If a family is close knit, it may be a considered a sign of weakness to let outsiders know how they are feeling or if there is a problem within the family. Generation to generation brings an aspect to the next generation about how a matter such as terminal illness is handled. The emotional interdependence presumably



References: Barker, R. L. (ED). (2003). The Social work dictionary (5th ed.) Baltimore, MD: NASW Press. Clair, M.St., (2000). An unfortunate family: terminal illness and the altering of the attachment Bond Davis, B.D., Cowley, S., & Ryland, R. (1996). The effects of terminal illness on patients and careers Ecke van, Y., Chope, R.C., & Emmelkamp, P.M. (2006), Bowlby and Bowen: attachment theory and family therapy Fraser, B., McKay, L., & Pease, L., (2010). Interview with Michael Kerr. Australian and New Zealand Journal of Family Therapy, 31(1), 100 – 109. Klever, P. (2005). Multigenerational stress and nuclear family functioning. Contemporary Family Therapy, 27 (2), 233 – 250. Murdock, N., & Gore, P. (2004). Stress, coping, and differentiation of self: a test of Bowen Theory Nichols, M., & Schartz, R., (2009). The essentials of family therapy, 4/e. Boston: Allyn & Bacon. Waldrop, D., (2007). Caregiver grief in terminal illness and bereavement: a mixed-methods Study Wright, J., (2009). Self-soothing – a recursive intrapsychic and relational process: the Contribution of the Bowen Theory to the process of self-soothing www.thebowencenter.org/pages/theory.html retrieved on October 16, 2011 at 4:30p.m. www.wisegeek.com/what-is-a-terminal-illness.htm retrieved on November 1, 2011 at 1:15 a.m. Zastrow, C., & Kirst-Ashman, K. (Ed). (2007). Understanding human behavior and the social Environment (7th ed.) Belmont, California: Brooks/Cole.

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Best Essays

    Rabstejnik, C. V. (n.d.). Family systems and Murray Bowen Theory. Human and Organizational Understanding and Development, 1-10. Retrieved from http://www.houd.info/bowenTheory.pdf…

    • 3714 Words
    • 15 Pages
    Best Essays
  • Good Essays

    Rather than seeking a cure as with traditional western medical practices, hospice and palliative care puts an emphasis on the quality of life by concentrating on symptom, pain, and stress reduction to alleviate patient suffering through the use of a multidisciplinary approach. This medical approach to patient care is deemed appropriate for patients with acute and chronic diseases, as well as for patients at the end of their life. While the palliative care treatment methodology seeks to relieve symptoms without providing a curative effect on the underlying disease or cause, hospice care addresses only those who are considered terminal, that is, with a life expectancy of less than six months. With respect to advanced disease progression, concerns pertaining to physical, emotional, spiritual, and social issues are addressed with regard to the patient and their loved ones.…

    • 293 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Long Term Care-Hospice

    • 2959 Words
    • 12 Pages

    Hospice is a process to end-of-life care and a kind of support facility for terminally ill patients. It provides comforting care, patient-centered care and related services. Comforting care relieves discomfort without improving the patient’s condition or curing his illness. Hospice is extended in a healthcare facility or at home. Its objective is to provide compassionate, emotional, and spiritual care for the dying patient.…

    • 2959 Words
    • 12 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Bowen Family Therapy

    • 316 Words
    • 2 Pages

    When working with families I have an interest in Narrative therapy, but I do not have any experience implementing the techniques of using this therapy. Therefore, Bowen family systems appear to be less complicated when applying the techniques used. When using Bowen family systems also called Intergenerational family therapy it looks at the entire family system by using a genogram as a tool in order to identify intergenerational patterns (Gehart & Tuttle, 2003). As children we tend to model the behaviors of our parent’s or primary caregivers, therefore, the importance of a genogram.…

    • 316 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    An underlying assumption of the literature on terminal illness is the belief that “facing a life threatening illness is a life crisis that intensifies the individual’s search for meaning” (Mcgrath, 2003). When making the overarching statement that all individuals search for meaning in their lives, it is important to acknowledge that this meaning and significance may be found in different ways. One’s reaction to having a terminal illness also differs based on the stage of development. This paper will examine how a terminal illness affects a person at adolescence and at middle adulthood and what it means to each of them, taking into account other variables such as gender, culture, and religiosity.…

    • 3425 Words
    • 14 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Structural Family Therapy

    • 744 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Yarhouse, M. A., & Sells, J. N. (2008). Family Therapies a Comprehensive Christian Appraisal. Madison, WI: InterVarsity Press.…

    • 744 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The theory I found in the text was structural family therapy. Family structure “refers to the way a family is organized into subsystems whose interactions are regulated by interpersonal boundaries”, (Nichols, 2013, pg. 124).…

    • 1298 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Have you ever known of someone who has had cancer? Almost every one of us could answer yes to that question without hesitation. According to data from the American Cancer society, approximately one of every three women, and one of every two men will develop some type of cancer in their lifetimes. That is an enormous amount of the population. Now think about how many people these individuals are close to, and how many people they interact with on a daily basis. Cancer does not only affect the patient, but also their families, friends, and acquaintances. Cancer causes emotional strain, uncertainty, and practical and financial problems. When one takes all of this into consideration, they realize what a huge number of people cancer truly affects. It is important that we understand not only what it feels like for those who have cancer, but also what kind of influence it has on their loved ones.…

    • 3418 Words
    • 14 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Health Care and Grief

    • 2480 Words
    • 10 Pages

    Grief transpires across all ages and is an aspect of all cultures (Jacob, 1993). Is a reaction to a situation of loss or impending loss, which can result from the loss of a loved one, or loss of something treasured (Dunn, 2004). There have been numerous research articles and publications in the medical field to aid in defining and managing the aspects of grief. Nevertheless, many aspects of grief still remain unknown (O’Mallon, 2009). Frequently, articles focus in the area of the grief experiences after the loss of a loved one, or treasured items. However, grief can manifest prior to loss of something or someone, such as in the instance of the diagnosis of terminal illness regarding a loved one (Dunn, 2004). This is referred to as anticipatory grief. Family members can go through the grief reaction prior to the death of a loved one once the diagnosis of terminal illness has been given. This is a time when, not only, a good support system is important, but heightened awareness of the heath care provider is necessary. Grief can manifest itself with both physical and mental complications, and requires a holistic approach of care (Field et al., 2008).…

    • 2480 Words
    • 10 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    “When cancer strikes a spouse, the effects of the disease reach far beyond the body of the sick person” (Relationship Changes 1). Many families in America go through the vicious and life changing journey of cancer in their household. This journey changes the lives of these people and their perspective on life. During this journey many families have to adjust to their new situations. Children might need to take care of parents, spouses may have to get a second job, and kids will have to take up extra duties around the house. The effects of cancer on a family can be very life changing and effect the family right from the diagnosis all the way up to the death of that family member.…

    • 871 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Article Critique

    • 1035 Words
    • 5 Pages

    These authors are part of different facilities and have different job titles. Granek, PhD is a critical health psychologist who studies grief, loss and cancer patients and their families. Krzyzanowska, MD, is a medical oncologist at Princess Margaret Hospital in Toronto. Tozer, MD, is an oncology doctor at Juravinski Cancer Centre in Canada. Mazzotta, MD, is also an oncology doctor in Ontario, Canada (Granek, e129). The connections of the authors show that they truly know what it feels like to talk to their patients about death and dying because oncologists have to talk about death every single day. The authors have cited 30 different references, most of which have titles that include oncologists communicating with death and dying. These sources show that the authors took their time researching and their references are pertinent to this topic.…

    • 1035 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    End-of-life Care

    • 819 Words
    • 4 Pages

    As the population ages in America, the dilemma of end-of-life care becomes an important issue for the professional nurse. As reported in Evidence-Based Geriatric Nursing Protocols for Best Practice, the Patient Self Determination Act (PSDA) of 1991 establishes advance directives and decision making for those when capacity to make their own health care decisions is impaired (Capezuti 2010). In light of this PDSA, nurses often find themselves involved in end-of-life situations that conflict with patient’s wishes for themselves and family’s wishes for the patient. The dilemma presents itself in this area of conflict between the conflicting desires of patient and family. The nurse must completely support the patient’s wishes while assisting the family to do the same. The nurse is advocate for the patient, educator of the family, and liaison between the interdisciplinary team.…

    • 819 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    plan. The way Florida would legalize euthanasia should be by setting up a set of…

    • 643 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Emanuel, E. J. .Fairclough, D. L. .Slutsman, J. & Emanuel, L. L. (2004) Understanding Economic and Other Burdens of Terminal Illness: The Experience of Patients and Their Caregivers. Retrieved from http://www.annals.org/content/132/6/451.1.short…

    • 814 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Nuclear Family "Debate"

    • 681 Words
    • 3 Pages

    A family is a group of people who live together. They share the housework and take care of one another.…

    • 681 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays

Related Topics