Lisa is now 29 years of age and has been participating in programs through the Department of Rehabilitative Services for several years. She works at a local store through a program which helps supervise her employment there. She has come to be well-liked by the staff and owners even if she often has "idiosyncratic" relationships with customers from time to time.
Lisa lives with her mother and her mother's partner. The two decided that it would be best for their relationship and Lisa if they were all one family. Although Lisa was unsure at first, she now welcomes Cindy as a parent. The death of Lisa's brother in Afghanistan was a shock to Cindy and Marsha, but Lisa had a difficult time understanding exactly what happened. She still asks about him.
Lisa rarely talks about her dad and sees him even less. There are rumors about him getting involved in drugs and being a part of some nefarious activities in the next town. Marsha doesn't know and doesn't want to know. Lisa has been able to maintain appropriate boundaries with men after alot of coaching and careful monitoring by those around her. She will likely continue to live at home.
* What is the time period for early adulthood? What are the physical, cognitive, and socio-emotional changes that typically take placed during this period?
* How might someone like Lisa understand and cope with loss? She has lost both her brother and her father. What effect might this have on her given her limitations?
* Given Marsha and Cindy's development as middle adults (the period of middle adulthood), what are the stresses that might result from having Lisa at home?
There are variations of the time period defined as “early adulthood”, a typical age span is “18-25 years old.” 1 Yet other researchers of psychosocial development, like Daniel Levinson, suggest a much broader range such as the following: “Early adult transition: 17–22 years, Entry life structure for early adulthood: 22–28 years Age-30 transition: 28–33 years, Culminating life structure for early adulthood: 33–40 years.” 1 During this period, people begin to develop much more intimate relationships. In fact according to the “triangular theory of love” there is a physical maturation among early adulthood individuals from “the intense sexual attraction of passionate love toward more settled companionate love. Commitment is key to a satisfying, enduring relationship.” 1 Physical development also allows a normally developing adult to move out of their house and attend college or secure a job. The early adulthood period should provide for physical independence and freedom from parents and freedom in intimate relationships. Early Adulthood should be a time of healthy habits like maintaining a nutritious diet and regular exercise. Likewise, physical development should not be at risk of certain health hazards like heart attacks. Early adulthood cognitive development should include “planning and decision making, information-gathering cognitive style, good school performance, and knowledge of vocational options and skills.” 1 Cognitive development will also include the ability to choose and engage in relationships. Early adulthood social-emotional development entails an increased “self-esteem, good emotional self-regulation and flexible coping strategies, good conflict-resolution skills, confidence in one’s ability to reach one’s goals, sense of personal responsibility for outcomes, persistence and good use of time, healthy identity development—movement toward exploration in depth and commitment certainty, strong moral character.” 1Early adulthood also encourages an individual to find a “sense of meaning and purpose in life, engendered by religion, spirituality, or other sources” and urges individuals to “desire to contribute meaningfully to one’s community.” 1 In our society today, this population does not focus on marriage in early adulthood but more on finding and maintaining a career then seeking a steady relationship.
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1 Berk, L. (2011). Chapter 14: Emotional and Social Development in Early Adulthood. Exploring Lifespan Development, 2/E (2 ed., pp. 364-393). Pearson. Retrieved November 13, 2011, from http://www.pearsonhighered.com/showcase/berkexploring2e/assets/Berk_ch14.pdf
Lisa may be having tremendous difficulty coping with and understanding the loss of her brother and her father. Lisa may find these losses unbearable because people with Autism do not do well with change, especially unexpected changes. Lisa may not be able to understand her brother’s death and her father’s lacking presence because “it is hard for people with autism to understand things they cannot see – i.e. where a person goes when they die. A concept such as “heaven” or the “afterlife” or terminology such as “passing away” may be very difficult for a person with autism to conceptualize.” 1 Lisa may not “understand other people may be feeling upset and can ask questions or make statements that seem blunt, uncaring or rude.” 1 Lisa is not being rude but is limited in seeing other people’s emotions and expressing or feeling her own emotions. Lisa is most likely having to cope with a chance and may be asking “lots and lots of questions about death or dying in great detail and learn all about it or become obsessed by it in an attempt to understand it.” 1 Lisa may benefit from “making a memory book” of her brother, where she can retrospectively visualize his existence and unfortunate end to his existence. Lisa may be able to utilize social stories for coping with her losses. Lisa should be given support from her mother and Cynthia so that the pain of losing her father as a figure in her life is alleviated.
ReplyDelete1 Autism Help - My Family. (2008). Autism Help - Home. Retrieved November 13, 2011, from http://www.autismhelp.info/family/autism-and-death/categories,id,2316,1-1.aspx
Middle Adulthood is a stage where people generally reach their "peak" and things start to change. Marsha and Cindy have many potential changes ahead of them that can be complicated by the need to care for Lisa at home. Some physical changes Marsha and Cindy may be going through include menopause. In a time where the body is stopping its reproductive cycles, a woman may feel "intense emotional reactions" and can change moods rapidly. The fact that both Marsha and Cindy are likely going through this stage at the same time can potentially pose a tough time for them to be patient with Lisa. The midlife crisis stage also gives potential for stress levels to be high and for Marsha and Cindy to worry about many things.
ReplyDeleteThings like a decline in reaction time and visual or hearing loss are possibilities for the women. They are less likely to be able to "keep up" with Lisa and risk things like not hearing her call to them for help or tripping over or dropping and breaking stuff. General health starts to decline at this stage as well, allowing for disease and cancer to appear. Should Marsha and/or Cindy be hurt or ill, it leaves less or no supervision for Lisa.
Retirement may be another stressful idea Marsha and Cindy have to deal with. They need to decide if they have money to cover basic needs for themselves and Lisa, along with having savings for things that might come up, such as a car breaking down, house repairs, etc. Not only do they need to be able to have reserve funds for themselves, but for Lisa as well. Should anything happen to them, they probably need to have money set aside to cover medical or funerary costs, as Lisa would not be able to pay for it. Writing a will or giving someone "custody" (despite the fact that she is an adult, Marsha and Cindy must decide who takes care of Lisa if something happens to them) of Lisa is another stressful agenda for the two women. Will Lisa inherit the house or will it be sold and the money given to Lisa and she will live with someone else? These are all stressful ideas Marsha and Cindy must decide at this point in their lives.
Human Development. Cyber Mesa. Retrieved November 17, 2011, from http://cybermesa.com/%7Ebjackson/Papers/HumanDevelChapter15.pdf