'4% & Child Welfare Community of Practice '4% CHILDWELFARE · Grief’and’loss’...
Transcript of '4% & Child Welfare Community of Practice '4% CHILDWELFARE · Grief’and’loss’...
Caring for Your Self: The Need for Caregiver Self Care Curriculum Development Team:
Dorothy Badry, PhD, RSW Jamie Hickey, BA, MSW (c) Faculty of Social Work University of Calgary
Project Funder: Public Health Agency of Canada (2011-‐2014)
CHILDWELFARE.CA
& Child WelfareCommunity of Practice
The Caregiver Curriculum on FASD©
Caring for Yourself: Caregiver Self-‐Care Module 3.1
Caring for the Caregiver
How to use this module
• Open in powerpoint or powerpoint viewer • Click the “Slideshow” tab then click the “From Beginning” menu buTon that appears below
• Use your mouse to click on the arrows and items on the slides to navigate
• Terms that appear in blue with an underline will give you a definiVon if you hold your mouse over them without clicking
How to use this module, conVnued
The main navigaVon buTons work like this…
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of this module
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Home topic list
How to use this module, conVnued
There are also 2 special navigaVon buTons…
This buTon will return you to a list if you are asked to click to learn more about different topics
This buTon will return you to the main chapter if you click on a coloured box to see an example
Table of contents • Caring for the Caregiver • Grief and Loss • AdjusVng ExpectaVons • Curious to Learn More? • References
Caring for the caregiver The following module will focus on the importance of developing good self-‐care skills. Providing care to an individual with FASD takes a tremendous amount of Vme and energy. Caring for yourself to maintain and replenish your energy reserves is an essenVal part of providing the best possible care.
Caring for the caregiver
As you read through this module, we ask you to remember a few key concepts… • Self-‐care acVviVes are not a luxury, but a necessity to provide
the best possible caregiving • Your mental, physical, emoVonal and spiritual health have a
direct impact on your caregiving • Support for caregivers is available • The face of caregiving for an individual with FASD will change
across the individual’s lifespan • As a caregiver you have the right to ask for the support you
need to achieve balance within your life
Grief and loss
If you have already worked through previous modules, some of this material may be a review for you. Previously this informaVon was presented in the context of the individual with FASD but for this module you are encouraged to consider it within your own context, as a caregiver.
Grief and loss
One important, yet oben ignored, concern that affects both the caregiver and the child is grief and loss. FASD is a complex diagnosis for both the individual affected and his or her caregiver. The individual affected by FASD may struggle with physical, psychological, emoVonal and behavioral challenges while caregivers must manage the stress of obtaining appropriate medical appointments, advocaVng within the school system and providing behavioural supports at home.
Grief and loss You may be surprised to see grief and loss addressed in this curriculum when so much of the focus is centered around the child’s potenVal. Indeed, children affected by FASD can thrive when provided with the right supports and guidance, however it is also important to acknowledge that the diagnosis of an FASD can also bring feelings of grief or a sense of loss. Not all people will experience grief and loss when receiving a diagnosis. For some, the diagnosis may bring feelings of relief while others may experience conflicVng feelings of both relief and grief. Every caregiver and every child will experience the process of receiving a diagnosis differently.
Grief and loss
There is no ‘right’ or ‘wrong’ way to feel in the face of a diagnosis. The following secVon is intended to provide some brief informaVon regarding the feelings of grief and loss that may surround a diagnosis. If, on reading this secVon, you idenVfy that you or your child are having difficulVes in adjusVng aber a diagnosis please contact your caseworker or invesVgate counseling services and/or support groups in your area.
Grief and loss
Grief is a natural and normal response to loss. A diagnosis does not need to be terminal or even life threatening to bring about feelings of grief. A serious or life-‐long diagnosis can also bring about emoVons of sadness and loss. Individuals diagnosed with an FASD are beginning a journey on a very different path then that travelled by their peers. This new journey requires both the child and the caregiver to shib and reframe expectaVons.
Grief and loss
As a caregiver, you may have envisioned a path for your child, imagined how their life would unfold and planned for the journey. Your child may have also imagined the future and set goals. This new journey may require the construcVon of new goals and aspiraVons. This change in journey represents a loss of expectaVons – the expectaVons that you and your child had built prior to diagnosis.
Grief and loss You may have already heard of the “5 stages of grief” model listed below:
– Denial – Anger – Bargaining – Sadness/Depression – Acceptance
These stages were iniVally defined by Elizabeth Kubler-‐Ross and many people do experience one or more of these stages when they experience a loss. It is very important to note, however, that there is no right or wrong way to experience grief and loss. Many people ‘skip’ some of the stages or experience the stages out of order. For the purpose of this module the stages are included as a way to represent the wide variety of emoVons within the overall experience of grief.
Grief and loss So, is grief harmful? Well, the answer to that quesVon depends on many things. Grief is a normal process. It is a natural human reacVon. Grief is not a “bad” emoVon or something to be feared. It is a normal response to an event that causes a severe life disrupVon and loss of the lifestyle, life path or life events you expected. Can grief be harmful? It certainly can be if it is experienced for a long Vme or experienced at extreme intensiVes. If you are concerned that your grief may be causing harm, we recommend that you speak with a mental health pracVVoner immediately. Many services and support groups may be available and a mental health pracVVoner will be the best person to advise you as to your opVons.
Grief and loss While they can be painful, the situaVons that cause grief can also provide a tremendous opportunity for growth. Major life events, like a life-‐long diagnosis, demand acVon. Caregivers and children must come up with new goals and adaptaVons in the face of the new informaVon provided by the diagnosis. The discomfort that comes with grief assists us not only in saying goodbye to the old expectaVons but it inspires us to take acVon to remedy the feeling.
Think of a situaVon or problem that you have solved. Prior to the situaVon or problem being resolved, how did you feel? Go back in your mind to the Vme it was happening and think about what you did when faced with the problem. What acVons did you take? How did you feel aber you took those acVons?
Grief and loss What should I do if I, or the child I am caring for, is experiencing grief aNer a diagnosis? As menVoned before, for severe or prolonged cases of grief and loss please contact your child’s caseworker or a mental health pracVVoner to assess what resources and programs may be available. This secVon is not intended to address situaVons where grief is incapacitaVng (you or your child cannot complete your daily rouVne due to grief) or cases where severe mental health concerns are indicated (grief lasVng more than 6 months, symptoms of traumaVzaVon are present or suicidal thoughts/acVons are present) as these situaVons require immediate aTenVon by qualified medical and mental health pracVVoners.
AdjusVng expectaVons
In the previous module the importance of adjusVng your expectaVons for the individual with FASD were discussed. In the face of diagnosis you, as a caregiver, may also need to adjust your expectaVons of yourself and the journey you and your child will take together.
AdjusVng expectaVons
Providing care to an individual with a disability is rewarding but can also be a challenging and, at Vmes, frustraVng experience. As a caregiver it is vital that you acknowledge your feelings and take care of yourself as well as the individual in your care. The diagnosis marks a change not only in the path of the individual with the diagnosis, but also your journey as a caregiver.
AdjusVng expectaVons
Many caregivers enjoy thinking about the future milestones that they will experience with their child, some of which may be disrupted by a diagnosis of FASD. It is important to remember, however, that a change in path does not mean failure. This change in path offers the opportunity for you and the individual you are caring for to approach life in a new way, learn new things and grow together as you progress along a new life path. It is the opportunity to author a success story that is unique and tailored to your family.
AdjusVng expectaVons
To see one family’s journey to success, check out the linked video, part of the Alberta FASD learning series.
Author your own success story SomeVmes it can be difficult to see the possibiliVes that exist when faced with a life disrupVon. For this exercise, choose a Vme when you can reflect and spend some quiet Vme alone. Write a new narraVve, or story, about what your caregiving journey will be. What successes will you and your child experience? What goals will you achieve? What challenges will you overcome? Once you have authored this new narraVve, think about what people and resources might be helpful. Begin the process of reaching out and building a network of support.
Curious to learn more? • Check out these videos from the Alberta FASD Learning Series! – The Ongoing Face of Grief and Loss and the Theory Behind It -‐ hTp://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=xh5mhld9R3I
– Grief and Loss: Strategic Support for Clients -‐ hTp://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=SU5oU-‐Up3gw
– Understanding the Needs of the Caregiver: Psychological treatment and intervenTon -‐ hTp://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=j8edSEnIc0Y
References
• James, J. W., & Friedman, R. (1998). The grief recovery handbook: The ac8on program for moving beyond death, divorce, and other losses. Harper Perennial.
• Kübler-‐Ross, E., Wessler, S., & Avioli, L. V. (1972). On death and dying. Jama, 221(2), 174-‐179.
The Caregiver Curriculum on FASD • Title: Caregiver Curriculum on FASD (Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder) 2014 • Author: Dorothy Badry & Jamie Hickey in collaboraVon with the Tri Province FASD
Research Team • Format: pdf and Power point -‐ online topics and modules on the website
fasdchildwelfare.ca • Publisher: Faculty of Social Work, University of Calgary; Faculty of Social Work,
University of Manitoba & Children’s Aid Society of Toronto-‐Child Welfare InsVtute
• This project was funded by the Public Health Agency of Canada. • ISBN 978-‐0-‐88953-‐375-‐2© • Use of Material: This material can be freely shared and used with acknowledgment
using the citaVon below. • CitaTon: Badry, D., Hickey, J. & the Tri Province FASD Research Team (2014). Caregiver Curriculum on
FASD. Online: fasdchildwelfare.ca; Faculty of Social Work, University of Calgary; Faculty of Social Work, University of Manitoba & Children’s Aid Society of Toronto-‐Child Welfare InsVtute. Funder: Public Health Agency of Canada.