Vargas Case Study: Week 7
Case Study
Since the last session, you received a call from Elizabeth who stated her family was in crisis. She reported that her nephew Geoff, the 15-year-old stepson of Bob’s sister, Katie, had nearly overdosed. She said that the family had noticed some changes with Geoff since his father’s recent death, but attributed the poor mood and slipping grades to the normal effects of grief. Elizabeth said that Geoff had never used drugs, as far as anybody in the family knew, and that the overdose was “a total surprise.” Elizabeth reported that after learning of this, Bob’s mother, Linda, called the school counselor but complained to Katie that “she was not at all helpful,” and told Katie exactly how she should handle it. Katie spoke with the school counselor who told her that she was not allowed to speak with Linda due to matters of confidentiality. Elizabeth informed you that Katie had shared her frustration with the school counselor’s suggestions to help him “get his mind off the sadness,” and believed he needed more help. You learned that Bob’s father, Tim, was trying his best to help, and that Elizabeth felt his intrusion was making matters worse. Among other things, Tim had taken Geoff out of school on a week-long camping trip against Katie’s wishes. Elizabeth said that the involvement of Linda and Tim, despite their good intentions, had begun to cause widespread family strife and asked if you could possibly see the entire family.
Review the Vargas Family Case Study located in the class resources. Write a 750-1,000-word paper in which you demonstrate how counselors apply narrative family counseling theory to analyze the presenting problems and choose appropriate interventions.
Be sure to answer the following questions in your paper:
- What are two current presenting problems for the Vargas family?
- How are the presenting problems maintained according to the narrative therapy perspective?
- What narrative therapy interventions would you plan to use in your next session? Make sure to identify and describe your plan for two interventions.
- What is the role of the counselor in the change process according to the narrative therapy perspective?
Include at least three scholarly sources (peer-reviewed journal articles, books, etc.).