Discuss about the Life Stage Interventions.
It is the developing brain of a child that makes them do things which are concerning issue in their parents’ life. (Siegel, D. J., 2012). The growing age of the child bring many changes in his/ her behaviour, physical, emotional and mental level. The growing up of a child is accompanied with many new challenges. These new changes and challenges transform the life of the child and the future. This tender age is tough to handle at times by the parents. It is important to look after the kids in the adolescent age as it is the tie when they are under transformation from a kid to being a teen. (Centers for Disease control and prevention, 2016).
Development is process that goes on with life in terms of physical, social behaviour, mental and emotional level. The various stages of life from birth to a baby, baby to childhood, childhood to adolescence, and to adulthood is accompanied with the development process. (Advocate for youth, 2008). The children belonging to the age group of 6- 12 undergo many changes in terms of physical growth but compared to the other growth factors, the psychological growth is the maximum. (Skuse, 2003).
An 11 years old child shows an increased level of physical activity. Develops more appetite and is less satisfied with self and society around. Changes in terms of mood, sensitivity towards things develop. Doubt related to the adolescence grows and this has an effect on the social behaviour. Friends are on top priority, issue with parents and sibling is common. Personal interests become more important, school work does not interest them. In terms of neurology now the brain volume is stabilised. The child can input the gained information whenever needed in everyday life. In case of 12 years old child structural changes in the brain is observed. The learning capacity increases. He or she starts to think themselves as a teen. Peer friendship is important to them. They have less interest in school and have a desire to imply their views and ideas rather than working with others. (Nicola, 2015).
The prime developmental criteria for an adolescent child are:
Physical development – a sudden growth in terms of height and body weight occurs. Development of secondary sexual characters occurs. They gain puberty in which the pituitary gland starts producing higher level of testosterone in male child and releasing more estrogen and progesterone in female child. There are changes in the skin as pimple starts to appear due oil gland secretions. More sweating and development of body odour occurs. Hairs start to develop in the arm pits and the genital area. Body proportions are also changed in both male and female. Voice change and sexual maturity is observed in boys. In girls menstrual cycle starts with secondary sexual characters development.
Mental development- they tend to become more independent as they mature. Skills and decision making power starts to develop. Career related issues start to develop, start to seek advices and ideas from friends and social media. Sense of responsible develops with social conscience. As per the National institute of mental health (NIH) the brain growth in the adolescent child is due to the formation of white matter and myelin sheath which intensify the connectivity of the neurons. These new changes shift from the frontal region to the back of the brain. The growth in the parietal and temporal areas that regulate the sensory, auditory, speech and spatial functions are developed by the child attain the age of 13 years.
With the development of frontal lobes of the brain, the amygdala also starts to generate emotions related to fear and daring reactions. Compare to an adult or a young child, the adolescent child is hyper-reactive in terms of emotions. (NIH).
Emotional development- starts to think about their appearance and getting along with their friends. Self consciousness and self centred behaviour is observed. They become very self conscious in terms of how they look and want to be a part of the groups and not left out by others. Develop liking for the opposite sex and family life is not of much concern to them. There is a lot of self esteem degradation among the girls. The teens develop egocentrism where they think that they are noticed by all in terms of appearance and other actions. Also they develop thoughts that the emotional or other experiences that occur in their life are never experienced by others. They are deeply affected by others opinions about them.
Behaviour development- a great change in personality is observed in the adolescent children. There is a higher level of mood swing among these children. Bullying and being neglected by others affects the children especially the girl child. Lack of sleep, anxiety, disagreements with family members, demand for independence, peer pressure and their application of logics and reasoning skills create troubles in their development. (Anthony, M.)
When I was 12 years old, I had to change my school because my parents want me to be in a place closer to home and they put me in a new school that was closer to my house, as the other one they had to travel nearly an hour to get there. Changing school was a big decision for me. Leaving back friends and all the memories from the old school was not easy for me. A new school, new people everything made me nervous. I tried talking to my parents but could not ignore the problem that they were facing. I had to agree to decision and join the new school.
It was not a good start for me in the new school. It was pretty obvious that I was not welcomed there. The group of girls looked down upon me for my dressing style and appearance. No one seemed interested in inviting me to their groups. I was left all alone in the class. My parents were curious about the new school and how I get along with the other kids. It was difficult for me to make them understand that I am able to make new friends. I could not explain them the comments and the way they all ignore me. I was so depressed with all of this. I could not concentrate on my studies and this had an impact on my grades. My parents were worried about my behaviour as I wanted to be left alone in my room and going to school never excited me. I hated everything about myself.
The experiences of a child determine the person they are going to be and also affect the overall growth and development. Kids development is well in a stable environment or a place where go daily and they are used to it. Change of place affects them negatively. (Sandstrom and Huerta 2013). Adapting to the new environment put them through many new challenges. The problem of bullying adds on it. This issue is one the most common problem with girls who enter their teenage. Bullying is one of major problems in schools among kids. As per Robert Sege, MD, chief of ambulatory paediatrics at Boston medical center and a contributor to the American Academy of Paediatrics- Bullying comprises of two people where one who is powerful dominates the weaker by harassing them publically, intimidating them and hurting them physically. (Hatfield, 2010). Some common type of bullying issues are verbal, physical, relational and cyber bullying (Peck, 2014).
One of the study related to bullying was conducted in Australia, which involved 6000 boy and 2500 girl students from 16 different schools, in 1993- 1994 with an average age of 14 years. The various criteria were being called by hurtful names, being teased, left out of groups purposely, being kicked or physically harmed and verbal threats. The study showed that 9.5% of the girls were purposely left out by the various groups in the class. Verbal bullying was found the most common problem with 11.5 % in girls and 12.6% in boys. (Rigby, K. 2007). As per studies conducted children develop psychiatric disorders which need to be treated if they are victims of being bullied. It can lead to depression, low self esteem, and also affect their academic performance. It can sometimes lead to risk of committing suicide. (Nierenberg, 2015).
Coming out of the protected shell often create problems for the kids. In my opinion the change of school affect the child adversely. Adapting to a whole new environment and making new relationships is not an easy task for them. The other problems which are related to it also make them to confine in themselves and not let them come out with full potential. It becomes important to let the child express him/herself to help them grow.
Therapy is required if the effect of the trauma or the regular bullying is affecting the child adversely. Depression is generally covered under mood swings and agreements, desires to be left alone is also a sign that the child is under depression. The lack of enthusiasm and social spirit is the signal that the child needs help. (Ray, 2015). Children who are victims of body shaming and bullying may develop difficulties in building relations in the future. (Cooper, and White, 2004). It is important find the root cause of the problem and starts the treatment therapy accordingly. Cognitive based therapies and talk therapies could be efficient to bring out the thoughts of the child. It is important for parents to understand the problem with their child and provide effective treatment to overcome these troubles. Some of the effective therapies are
It is based on developing a relation in thoughts, feelings and actions. There should be healthy relationship developed in order to extract the information regarding the behavioural changes. The therapy should interest the child so using games and other role plays would help. In this therapy the negative thoughts are being removed. They are helped to change their negative thoughts about themselves. (Baker et al, 2002).
It means interacting with the kids through the stories either ways. It includes listening to the stories of the kids and also narrating them stories of people who had undergone the same situations or troubles in their lives. (Freedman et al). Having group discussion and analysing the behaviour of child through various role plays would help in solving the problem. The narrative therapist analyse the child’s problem and look at various aspects of the issue related to family and the social environment of the child. (Wyatt and Seid, 2008). Narrative therapy incorporates the idea of community work. “Tree of life” a method invented by Ncazelo Ncuba (REPSSI) and David Denborough (Dulwich centre foundation) to help the children of people who died of HIV/AIDS. It was a very good approach to encourage the children to develop self confidence, recognise their potential and talents, to face the difficulties in life with strength. (Georgia et al, 2009).
Tree of life is used as a model for narrating their experiences. They are told to relate the parts of a tree with their life and formulate a story. For e.g. the root signifies the origin of the person. The ground represents the current habitat and everyday life. Trunk is associated with the personal qualities and nature of the person focusing on their talents. The branches symbolise the future desires and aspirations. Leaves relate to the people they are close with and fruits are the gifts they obtain in life. (Ncuba, 2006).
Image source: Dulwich centre
This involves the act where the kid draw pictures which reflect the thoughts going on in his/her mind. Here metaphors are used from the drawing for understanding the mindset of the kid. (Stone, and Everts, 2006). Children express their thoughts through drawings and symbols. The counsellor implicit the meaning and explain the child about their behaviour and how to tackle with the problem. (Wither and Russell, 2009).
Expressive art therapy is the method of assisting young child to identify the meaning about their stories. Painting, clay art, stories etc are the medium used to form the story of the kid.( psychotherapy and counselling federation of Australia, 2015). The counsellor do not explain the meaning of the creation instead of this they try to understand the child’s point of view about the creation and interpret the story. (Pearson and Wilson, 2009).
Play and creative based activities always excite children. The therapy aims at interacting with the children and involving them in activities that that will motivate them and help them to talk opening and freely with the counsellor. The counsellor should take care of the theoretical background of the therapy. The clients could be told to draw pictures, the child could be given a task to make paper dolls and label it with people they love or a scavenger hunt. This would bring the child’s emotions and thought in the eye of the counsellor who can proceed with the further therapy. (Lowenstein, 2010.)
As a therapist my approach to solve the problem would be narrative therapy where I can bring out the problem of the girl through her story, the effect of the trauma and her difficulties. Many narrative therapists believe that everyone wants someone to listen to their stories as per the identity they choose. As a therapist, I would make her realise that she has to be expressive and how to tackle with the bullying in the school. She has to build her confidence and should express herself to her parents. Try to be social and get along with the people around. She should not look down upon herself as she is equal to all the other girls in her class. A tree of life could be a helpful in this case. The child could express freely about the situation in the tree of life and can narrate her side. Expressing herself will ease her pain and troubles. Further I would explain her how she can overcome the situation with confidence and how she needs to be open with her parents.
Events in life have many interpretations which are narrated by the people depending on the situation and other related factors. Narrative therapy aims on redefining the meaning of the stories which are interpreted by the client. A kid of 12 years generally considers thing and event happening in life in a negative way. To deal with a 12 years old girl undergoing a traumatic situation, it is important to first let her frame the story in her own perspective and let her define the incident as per her understanding. As a therapist my aim would be to draw the conclusion of the story to a positive end. Leading her thoughts towards to different situations and outcomes and reconstructing the story which can lead to a positive and good result. This would help the kid to understand that every event is important and provide new and better meaning to their story. It will help her to realise the self worth and to look down upon herself.
Conclusion
Adolescence is the age that should be handled very carefully. Parents and the teachers should always look at the children entering this phase of life and guide them accordingly. Confidence and self esteem is something that crafts the future of the person. A good mental health can shape a good future for the child. Narrative therapy can be an important tool to help them deal with the situation and find a positive outcome to their situation. It is a healing therapy where people narrate the incidents in the form of stories. The therapists help them to reconstruct the story to reach towards a positive ending.
References
Anthony, M. Social Development in 11-13 Years Olds. Parents, rising readers & learners. Retrieved from https://www.scholastic.com/parents/resources/article/stages-milestones/social-development-11-13-year-olds
Baker et al. (2002). Promising practices. A handbook for Children’s mental health practitioners. Children’s mental health Ontario.
Cooper, K and White, R. E. (2004). Bullying in elementary school. Burning issues: Foundations of education. R&L Education.
Dulwich centre: a gateway to narrative therapy & community work. Tree of life. Retrieved on 2016 Sep 24 from https://dulwichcentre.com.au/the-tree-of-life/
Expressive art therapy. (2015). psychotherapy and counselling federation of Australia. Retrieved on 2016 sep 24 from https://www.pacfa.org.au/member-associations/pacfa-sections/expressive-arts-therapies.
Freedman et al. About narrative therapy with children. Narrative approaches. Retrieved on 2016 Sep 24 from https://www.narrativeapproaches.com/?p=1404
Hatfield, H. (2010). Why bullies bully. WebMD. Retrieved on 2016 sep 24 from https://www.webmd.com/parenting/features/prevent-cyberbullying-and-school-bullying#1
Georgia et al. (2009). Tree of life in a community context. 50-54. Retrieved on 2016 Sep 24 from https://dulwichcentre.com.au/wp-content/…/01/tree-of-life-community-context.pdf
Lowenstein, L. (2010). Creative play therapy interventions for children and families. Retrieved on 2016 Sep 24 from https://www.lianalowenstein.com/article_journals.pdf
Nierenberg, C. (2015, Dec 9). Childhood bullying can have lasting effects on mental health. Livescience. Retrieved on 2016 Sep 24 from https://www.livescience.com/53034-childhood-bullying-lasting-mental-health-effects.html
Ncuba, N. (2007). Tree of life: an approach to working with vulnerable children.DVD. Dulwich centre publication.
Parents’ sex ed center. (2008). Advocate for youth. Retrieved on 2016 Sep 24 from https://www.advocatesforyouth.org/publications/155-parents
Pearson, M. and Wilson, H. (2009). Using expressive arts to work with the mind, body and emotions.
Peck, S. (2014). The 4 common types of bullying. Parents.com. Retrieved on 2016 Sep 24 from https://www.parents.com/kids/problems/bullying/common-types-of-bullying/
Ray, D. C. (2015, Oct 14). Extraordinary 12 years old. Child development. New York: Routledge publication.
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Rigby, K. (2007). Bullying in Australian schools. Bullying in schools: and what to do about it. Australia: Aust council for Ed Research.
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Sandstrom, H & Huerta, S. (2013). The negative effects of industry on child development. Urban Institute. Available on 2016 Sep 24 from https://www.urban.org/sites/default/files/alfresco/publication-pdfs/412908-the-negative-effects-of-Instability-on -child-development-fact-sheet.pdf
The teen brain: Still under construction. National Institute of Health. Retrieved from https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/publications/the-teen-brain-still-under-construction/index.shtml
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