Final Chapter! Chapter 16!

This chapter taught me alot about the process of dying. I have been around death, and experienced death my whole entire life. But it seems like more so within these past 5 years. I have seen people die at every age, and it doesnt matter what age the person is, it is ALWAYS hard for the family. Each and every person handles death a different way. I guess depending on the situation leading up to the death, some people can be more 'okay' with it, and other situations, can leave people in shock about the death. My grandma passed away about 2 years ago. She had been battling different kinds of cancer my whole life, doing chemo and radiation and whatnot. This last time, she had enough. She didnt want to fight it anymore, her husband had passed away himself 20 years prior, so she had no desire to keep fighting. She told our family that she wanted to pass away in California, and be buried there next to her husband. Sure enough a week after moving back to California, she had passed away. It hurts that she is not here with us, but im sure i can vouch for my whole family when i say i think we are all 'okay' with her passing. She was in pain, she was miserable, since her husband passed thats all she ever wanted to do because she didnt like living and going on without him. It was interesting reading this chapter, and seeing how many different parts of the process i and my family have been through, such as grief and mourning. Death is not an easy thing to experience. I just now think of her as an angel watching down and guiding us. 

Week 9!

            This week it was hard for me to pick just one topic to write about. I am a CNA and take care of elderly people, so most of the stuff it talked about, such as memory, depression, diseases, etc I have witnessed at some point in my career.  I’ve decided to write my blog on Alzheimer’s. Alzheimer’s involves impairment of behavioral and cognitive functioning.

The textbook defined Alzheimer’s disease as, ‘a disease marked by gradual declines in memory, attention, and judgment; confusion as to time and place; difficulties in communication; decline in self-care skills; inappropriate behavior; and personality changes.’

There was a sentence in the textbook that kind of threw me off guard: ‘alzheimer’s disease causes people to change from thinking, communicative human beings to confused, bedridden victims unable to recognize their family members and close friends.’ To me that seems like a harsh way to word it. Alzheimer’s is a hard disease to cope with as it is, it’s hard for the staff, family members, or even sometimes the residents (if they are aware that they are starting to be a little more forgetful). Although it is true, it was almost unnecessary to include that in the textbook, when there is a definition of Alzheimer’s that seems to be less harsh.

To me it is amazing how dementia and Alzheimer’s is kind of hit or miss from person to person. The other day at the grocery store, the man in front of me was 100 years old (turning 101 on july 1) and he was doing awesome! Doing his own shopping, and then he got in his truck and drove away! You don’t see many 100 year olds driving!  Before my Grandmother passed away, she was starting to show symptoms of dementia, which, to me is a scary thought. She was pretty young, in her 70s when she passed away, I could only imagine how she would be if another 10 years or so would have passed by. 

week 8- parent/child relationships

This week i wanted to write about parent-child relationships, as it talked about it in chapter 13. Although my parents and i have not always seen eye to eye, i am thankful of our relationship now. In the book it had talked about a 15 year old girl, who thought her mother was the dumbest person on the planet. I know that myself, i thought my parents had no idea what i was going through, and i thought because of that they were being unfair. As i got older, i now know that my parents were in fact being fair, they would make decisions based on what was best for me and my well being. I think that most teenagers go through that stage with their parents. and until the teenager grows and matures more, its something that all parents usually have to go through as well.

My parents have had an empty nest for quite some years now. In chapter 13 it says that most (roughly half) young adults move back to their parents house at least once after they first move out. Out of 4 children, only 1 moved back in with my parents. Now, im not sure if its my parents that are lonely or if its their 'midlife crisis' talking, ever since i starting going back to college, my parents have repeatedly tried over and over again to try to get me to move in with them and go to the college closer to their house. And although it probably wont ever happen, i guess it never really gets old to have your parents want to be able to spend as much time with you as possible.

week 7-divorce

these are chapters that i really enjoyed reading. not because i am married, or divorced or anything like that. but because i feel like i am witnessing more and more divorces now days.

i think that marriage and relationships are a valuable gift that shouldnt be taken lightly. I think that in most cases it is taken too lightly. I feel like alot of people are getting married for the wrong reasons, such as the pressure from a family memeber, or due to a pregnancy, etc.  i hate the fact that it seems divorce in the new normal. Just from seeing couples going through divorces around me, it seems most couples are not trying to work out their differences, they'd rather just jump right to getting a divorce, just because they can. it baffeled my mind that the united states has one of the highest divorce rates in the world, and italy has the lowest. what are couples in italy doing differently then couples in the united states? Im not saying that i am totally against divorce, i mean if someone isnt happy, why make them suffer. but i do feel that most couples should at least try to work on things before taking the easy way out.

is the divorce rate getting higher because people have been getting married at a younger age? is it because people dont talk about one anothers morals and beliefs before tying the not?

Week 6

I think that last weeks “parenting styles” kind of fit into this week’s topics a little bit. This week it talked about teenage development, physically and mentally.  You might be wondering how? But I feel like as a young adult going through puberty, you never really know what you’re going to get.  And as a parent you should be there for your teenager as they go through what could be some rough changes.  Even if it is just emotional support. Of course you're going to get the typical 'uninvolved' parent, who wants to have little to do with the teens emotional needs, and with the teens body changing, as well as mood, maybe an uninvolved parent is what triggers a teenagers appearance or lash for attention? Maybe theres something behind why a teenager is obese? maybe theres a reason why a teenager is anorexic? But, as a parent, they should be trying to find the root to whats going on, instead of helping it along.

Reading the article “teens before their time” was almost scary to me. Reading that some girls start growing breast and/or pubic hair at the age of 6! I could not imagine the stress and anxiety that the parents must have letting their daughters out of their house. Let alone, the feelings of the young girl! She is too young to even begin to understand what is going on. In the book it talks about puberty, and how it can occur earlier for girls who have experienced family conflict or depression. But I couldn’t imagine how depressed a 6 year old could be, to kick start puberty. When I was 6 all I could think about was cartoons and/or toys. Its reading articles like this that scare me, about the thought of having a daughter. 

Parenting Styles

This week’s chapter on different parenting styles was very interesting to me. I was able to reflect on my own parents, friends’ parents, and even acquaintances’ parenting styles. And, I highly doubt ANY family is ever the exact same. Some might be similar, but different in another way.

                I would like to think of my parents as being in the Permissive Parenting category. Meaning they offered warmth and caring whenever needed, but had little parental control. Well, I guess I cant really say they didn’t have control, they definitely HAD control whenever they needed it. As I was growing up, my parents weren’t the typical ‘Parents’.  They more so acted as if they were my siblings and I’s friends, rather than parents. It’s nothing that I am ashamed of. I love the fact that I feel I can tell my parents just about everything.  And maybe that’s what they were going for, so that as children and young adults we would feel comfortable talking to them, instead of finding things out the hard way.  I do always think to myself how things would have been if they did things differently, for instance, if they were more structured, more rules and guidelines.

                One of my brothers (he is half, but that doesn’t matter to us, he’s still my BROTHER) was pretty much raised with his mother in California, and its nothing against her, I love her to death, back 15 years or so, she was the ‘Uninvolved Parent’ (She’s not anymore). She wouldn’t care what my brother was doing, who he was hanging out with, etc. Long story short, my brother was constantly getting into trouble, with drugs and the law and whatnot. So he often times moved up to my house with my parents. Going from an uninvolved parent to parents who cared even just a little bit, was hard on my brother.  He moved back and forth a handful of times trying to find the right thing to do, it was hard for him having a parent figure around and asking questions and whatnot. But as he got older, he finally opened his eyes to see that the world isn’t against him. 

Medicating Young Minds

This week I wanted to write my reflection blog on ‘Medicating Young Minds.”  Although, I do not have children, I do believe that when it comes to medication, it is just as important no matter what the age. With working in the medical field, it is very important to see if there are changes with any of my elderly patients from one day to the other.

Everyone knows that one medication may be work great for one person, and may give another person different side effects, or may contradict a different medication that ones taking. In the article it seems the Author doesn’t agree with the system of prescribing medications to children, and to a point, I also agree with the author.  I personally believe that doctors often time prescribe medication to a person far too often without doing the proper research or getting in depth of whats really going on, especially when it comes to children. Now days (not sure how it was before) doctors seem to jump the gun about prescribing the medication, and then quickly moving on to the next patient. Yes, I do believe that if NEEDED the child should be prescribed medication, but if there is a different alternative that can be taken, such as therapy, it should be done first.

Another thing that caught my eye, was that are we sure that what we are putting in our bodies are good for us?  In the article, it states that the FDA only requires 6-8 weeks of testing a drug, to see whether it is a good drug to take or not.  6-8 weeks?!? That’s not very long! How do they know that the data would be correct for an extended period of time? 

So in the end, I dont think that any parent should leave a prescription option solely up to the doctor. What the doctor thinks he knows, or what he might prescribe to one child, may not always be right for your own child. Each parent and/or person should really do research before taking a medication or giving a medication. 

Week 3

This past week, I have had my nephew staying with me at the house. With him living in Eastern Washington I hardly get to see him, in which he hardly knows me. Which is sad to me. He is 4 years old, and is the SHYEST child i think i have ever met! My roommate has a 4 year old daughter, and is very outgoing. She will go up to a random stranger and start a conversation with them (if we let her). My nephew on the other hand, took an hour or so to even say one word to me, and even then he wasn't talking to me, he was singing, thinking no one was paying attention. I was just in shock, and have been, with how shy he is around people, let alone his own family. I took him to play at the Jump Zone one day, and there was NO way he would interact with any other kids there. He would go play, come back to me and ask "Did you see that? Wasn't it awesome?!" It has definitely been different having a young boy in the house, and seeing how he does things, when I have been so used to having a young girl in the house. Is that why they are so different? Because they are both of different genders? Maybe is has to do something with the mothers (who are the main caregivers)? The little girls mother is outgoing, the boy's mother is shy and keeps to herself. Maybe it has to do with the girl being in daycare, while the boy is staying home with his mother on a daily basis? 

Week 2

These past two chapters where the ones I could NOT wait to read. Although, I do not have any children, yet, I LOVE kids! It fascinates me how they grow, the different stages they go through, seeing how each child is different in many ways, pretty much everything!  

One thing that really catches my eye, is how different genes can be passed from the parents to the child. My sister just had a baby in February, and it is amazing to me to see how much her son looks so much like her, yet so much like the father as well, but how he looks even more like his older brother.  One thing I hear a lot is that I look, talk, act etc. like my mother. If people could, i'm sure most would say I even breath like her. If I were to answer a phone, everyone would assume I was in fact my mother. When I was younger I thought it was the most annoying thing, because I wanted to be my own person. Now, I look at it and I would kill to be half the person my mom is.

                One of the sections that I didn’t necessarily like to read, but it was interesting was the section about SIDS (sudden infant death syndrome). When I was in 8^th grade my cousin lost a son to SIDS. At the time I was old enough to know what had happened, but young enough to not know anything about SIDS. It was heartbreaking. Very hard to see someone you are so close with in so much pain. Now days, I have seen a baby monitors that you can clip to your baby’s diaper and it detects every movement that a baby takes. It also alarms after a certain amount of time if your baby stops moving (breathing).  It is reassuring to know that a baby dying from SIDS is not necessarily because a parent has done something wrong. What I thought was odd, was that it says that African American infants are MORE likely to die from SIDS than any other culture, because they just don’t know to not have infants sleep on their stomachs? I mean, I am glad that they are trying to get the message out to the African American communities. I guess I was just shocked that they were able to limit it to mainly African American infants when it can happen to any culture. 

Monkey See, Monkey Do

There was a lot of information in Chapter 1 that I thoroughly enjoyed reading and learning about. What interested me and caught my eye, was the theoretical perspectives on human development. Whether it was a psychodynamic theory or a cognitive theory, there are pieces of every theory that made me question whether I believe the theory I true or false.

My 3 year old nephew has a slight learning disability. He is not yet able to talk, so when he trying to communicate what he wants/needs, he often times gets frustrated when no one is able to understand what he wants. Which, most times ends in a tantrum. If he is in a room full of adults, he is doing anything and everything to get the attention on him, usually things he knows he is not supposed to be doing. Although, when he is around other kids, such as a preschool or daycare, and sees what they are doing he follows their lead, and you would never know he was in the room. To me it’s funny how the environment around you (nature) can affect how one may act.

While reading through the different theories, one that popped out what the social learning theory. It referrers to people that watch those around them and imitate them. Some of us know this as “Monkey see, Monkey do”. I do believe that plays a huge roll in my nephew’s learning. Once he sees other kids doing something, he tends to follow and does the same. Even something as simple as laying down and taking a nap, if he sees other children taking a nap, he will lay down and also take a nap. For once, when he is around other children he is not thriving for attention.

Although, with reading through the different theories, Erik Erikson’s Theory stating that the life cycle is composed of 8 different stages, I’m not sure if I necessarily agree with. To me, I feel like some of the stages, is what people may EXPECT of you at that age. But, with people’s maturity levels being different from one another, this theory is not necessarily correct for everyone. It’s hard telling about the early years because obviously, I can’t remember how I was at age 1. According to his theory, I right now should be committing myself in a loving relationship. Sure, maybe I have a slow maturity level at age 24 (I don’t think I do) but my goal right now is school, a relationship right now, is a possibility of holding me back. His theory could be true for some people, but I don’t think it is true for everyone. Everyone is different.