...My struggle with addiction started with my constructive escapes of sports and music. I turned to them when I felt lonely, angry, inadequate, or faced any problems. At the same time, I also enjoyed getting in trouble. This led me to my first encounter with drugs when I was just 14-years-old. Alcohol provided me temporary relief. While people say it's the first hit that makes you an addict, I disagree. It's a disease and so it's a matter or progression. Time is needed for your brain to react to the continuous surge of dopamine and stop making this chemical itself. As this happens, you start enjoying the drug less and needing more of it to get high. By the time I was in college I'd reached this point. This is when some friends introduced me to dope. My Struggle With Addiction led me to Find Dope My struggle with addiction started because my drug...
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...Sip by sip my father’s addiction progressed as my childhood quickly faded.Transitioning from childhood to adulthood happened in a blink of an eye when I was about twelve years old. It was a cold winter's night in Kensington, NH, where my grandparents live. At the time, my father was struggling with alcoholism and drug addiction and had no determination to better himself. My family was fully aware of the issue, but I had very little knowledge of the situation. I was told he was experiencing a “rough patch in life.” My younger sister, who was seven years old at the time, asked my grandmother to help her set up the dining-room computer so that she could play a game. To her surprise, she was told, “Ask your father.” As she wandered into the living-room...
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...My Addiction Overcoming my addiction was the hardest thing I’ve ever done. When most people think of addictions, they think of drugs and alcohol; I wish my addiction was something of that nature. My mental disorder--diagnosed as bipolar disorder at age 14--took me to a place where I never want to be again. My addictions were the lows I experienced and the high that came from cutting into my own skin. Most people don’t understand this. They don’t understand how one can become addicted to hurting themselves. This is a hard concept for mentally healthy people to grasp; they’ve never felt an urge like that themselves. It’s nearly impossible to wrap my own head around it. It’s a difficult feeling to qualify and quantify. The closest I’ve ever gotten to describing it was this: it’s like there is this darkness inside of you, in your veins. The only way to heal that pain is by making it physical. When pain is mental, the only treatment is medication. When pain is physical, however, it can be nursed and gotten rid of. After that injury is bandaged, you can move on and be normal again--until the pain slinks into your organs and you start to decompose from the inside again. Therefore, treating the pain becomes the addiction. Seeing blood on your hands and legs becomes the addiction. The pain becomes the addiction....
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...There are currently about twenty-four million people in the United States addicted to alcohol or drugs (“Abuse, National Institute on Drug”). However, only about eleven percent of these people will seek treatment; the remaining eight-nine percent of people continue their lives with this incurable disease. There are various reasons why they are not being treated, some are unable to afford the cost, some lack the support and family and friends and others are still in the state of denial. In the book Clean by Amy Read, the Documentary, Russell Brand from Addiction to Recovery and the short story, “A Counselor’s Personal Narrative on Drug Addiction,” by Lauren Armstrong express that until society accepts that addiction is a serious disease, the...
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...The book Jesus’ Son is a collection of short stories by Denis Johnson published in 1992. An excerpt that helps to convey the main argument the book seeks to make about addiction comes from the story “Work,” from the bottom of page 63 until page 66. An element from this genre that helped to convey the “truth” of the book in this excerpt was the limited description of character and setting. Additionally, the use of first person narrative throughout the book serves to give the reader an experience that conveys the point of the book in terms of addiction in a way that one writing in third person would have trouble doing. Johnson’s use of these aspects in his short stories serve to express the fleeting nature of life experiences that addiction...
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...Throughout the semester, we have covered many angles of the world of prison. These stories, documentaries, and television shows have provided valuable insight into addressing stereotypes that prisoners are labeled with, as well as many of the issues with our current prison system. One of the main stereotypes that exists is that prisoners with drug addictions are helpless and will do anything they can to feed their addictions. These portrayals can been seen almost everywhere in the mainstream media, from television shows to popular literature. They have a large impact on how the general public views these people, and provides an inaccurate view of how these individuals really are. In the show Orange is the New Black, prisoners with drug addictions,...
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...comparing them to my master copy while grading your work. 3. Information needed to complete this form can be found within the case file documents. If required information is missing, unavailable, or does not exist, please make a note of that in your report. DO NOT MANUFACTURE MISSING INFORMATION! 4. The space provided for your answers are recommendations as to how long your responses should be. You may use more or less space, depending on what you feel should be included. There is no page limit for this assignment. 5. Please be sure to clearly indicate where your answers begin. Feel free to adjust the font, use bold type, or some other means for setting your responses apart (but please do NOT change the color of the typeface). 6. When you have completed entering your responses, print out your final copy and sign the last page. Also, be sure to attach any necessary documents before you submit the final copy. DO NOT INCLUDE THIS SHEET WHEN SUBMITTING STAGE TWO FOR GRADING! KANE COUNTY ADULT COURT SERVICES PRE-SENTENCE INVESTIGATION REPORT Please type all responses Defendant’s Name: Edward Ignatious Case #: 16 CF 0071 Investigator’s Name: Rodrick Parker Date of Report: 3/15/16 Charge(s) Plead: Unlawful Use of Weapon (720 ILCS 5/24-1(a)(8)) & Aggravated Assault (720 ILCS 5/12-2(c)(1)) Date of Guilty Plea: 3/2/16 Sentencing Date: 3/28/16 Part I: Case Information and Summary Please provide a narrative that...
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...suffering, and postmodern therapeutic techniques such as “dis-solving” problematic behaviors through conversation. (Nichols, M., 2010, p.302) This narrative will explore how this synthesis can be achieved using collaborative family therapy techniques and traditional Buddhist teachings and philosophy, and will also compare and contrast traditional psychodynamic therapies with current trends in social work practice with children and families. My conception of the article “Suffering and the Relationship with the Problem in Postmodern Therapies: A Buddhist Re-Visioning” is multifaceted. The authors present several philosophies of life that are complicated and engrossing. For instance, the Buddhist premise that suffering in life is inevitable and unavoidable is both intriguing and controversial. This concept intrigues me because based upon my own experience I know that on occasion life is going to throw me some “curveballs.” The death of my mother last year and the twenty-seven years of alcoholism and drug addiction that I survived is proof that life has the power to surprise you at times. Some of the lessons that I was taught as a child didn’t adequately prepare me to deal with life’s inevitable suffering. In fact, many of the lessons that were given to me by various caregivers actually hindered my ability to “flow with” or let go of my most pressing problematic...
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...N I N G O B J E C T I V E S 10 1. Identify the purpose and structure of narrative writing. 2. Recognize how to write a narrative essay. Rhetorical modes simply mean the ways in which we can effectively communicate through language. This chapter covers nine common rhetorical modes. As you read about these nine modes, keep in mind that the rhetorical mode a writer chooses depends on his or her purpose for writing. Sometimes writers incorporate a variety of modes in one essay. In covering the nine rhetorical modes, this chapter also emphasizes these as a set of tools that will allow you greater flexibility and effectiveness in communicating with your audience and expressing your ideas. rhetorical modes The ways in which we effectively communicate through language. 1.1 The Purpose of Narrative Writing Narration means the art of storytelling, and the purpose of narrative writing is to tell stories. Any time you tell a story to a friend or family member about an event or incident in your day, you engage in a form of narration. In addition, a narrative can be factual or fictional. A factual story is one that is based on, and tries to be faithful to, actual events as they unfolded in real life. A fictional story is a made-up, or imagined, story; the writer of a fictional story can create characters and events as he or she sees fit. However, the big distinction between factual and fictional narratives is based on a writer’s purpose. The writers of factual stories try to recount...
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...Introduction In this essay, I will discuss my experience of interviewing a family and constructing a genogram guided by their narrative. For this task, I purposely chose a family that is very different from my family of origin in terms of their cultural heritage. I will reflect on differences and similarities between our families as well as my prejudices and hypothesis that I inevitably constructed before and during the process. To identify this family, I had to approach some colleagues proposing to them to participate in the interview. Fortunately, one of them introduced me to her friend. Francesca had an interest in psychology, and since she was free and not much committed, I did welcome her with a cup of coffee to share more about the interview. After I formally introduced myself to her, I laid down to her the framework of the interview, and she agreed to participate with her husband, Matteo. Family context The family I interviewed comes from Italy, but they moved to the UK 3 years ago. I noticed that knowing these few details I was already constructing hypothesis based on stereotypes. I was dreading the interview because I was expecting to have difficulty in stopping them talking since I was concerned about getting enough information to construct the genogram. I also hypothesized whether being new to the UK makes them consider participating in projects like mine to increase a sense of belonging. Another hypothesis where I imagined them to have very firmly attachments to...
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...Search” paper allows you to relate your personal experience engaged with some aspect of a topic, to hunt for facts and opinions firsthand, and to provide a step-by-step record of the search process. It’s part research paper, part personal narrative, part reflection. • First step: choose a controversial topic broadly pertaining to digital technology, digital media, “the internet,” television, or modern computing technology that truly interests you—specifically some problem or concern you want to be more informed about (use Homework #1 as a launching point). The topic, however, has to be argumentatively rich, meaning that there have to be many different viewpoints on the issue. • Second step: rather than starting with a thesis or claim, you’re going to begin with a question or problem spurred by some personal experience or exploration. Think of yourself like an investigative journalist or social scientist: if you’re writing about online communities, immerse yourself in one; if you’re writing about internet/television/cell phone addiction, deprive yourself for a few days; if you’re investigating some activity, try engaging in that activity; etc. You’re trying to get the heart of a controversy by gaining first-hand experience. • Third step: start researching. As you research, keep track of what you know and what you learn about the topic, how your assumptions change, and how different sources affect your perspective on your personal experiences and other sources. If you...
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...iNTEGRATIVE Perpetual evolution: A dynamic integrative approach to developing praxis in counselling psychology Table of Contents Table of Contents 1 Theory Building in Counselling Psychology 2 The Impulse Toward Eclecticism 4 My Bohartian History 6 Adlerian Psychotherapy as Structured Eclecticism 10 My Adlerian Roots 11 Beyond Adler: Robertsonian Meme Therapy 13 The Nature of Self 13 The Potential for Using Memes in Counselling 15 A Use of Meme Theory in Counselling a Suicidal Youth 17 Holistic, Dynamic and Integrative: Looking Forward in Our Profession 21 Summarizing the Foundational Principles of My Practice 21 Revisiting Holism 23 Future directions 25 Footnotes 27 Theory Building in Counselling Psychology An early text lamented, “A good theory is clear, comprehensive, explicit, parsimonious, and useful. We appear to have a paucity of good theories in psychology” (Stefflre & Matheny, 1968). Lent attempted to reduce this paucity by formulating his own theory: Wellness is intended to capture the notion of health as a dynamic state or process rather than a static endpoint; psychosocial wellness acknowledges the importance of both intrapersonal and interpersonal functioning. The multiple aspects of wellness would include a) self-perceived (domain and/or global) satisfaction (hedonic well-being), b) domain/role satisfactoriness, c) presence of prosocial versus antisocial behavior, and d) low levels of psychologistical...
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...himself or herself by not eating the foods their friends have at parties, outings, etc. She also works with the families on how to educate the schools (child's teachers) about the illness and how the school could embrace the child and create an atmosphere where the child feels more comfortable socially and the other students are not intimidated by child's wheelchair and/or presence of personal assistant or nurse. Ronit also, spent 7 years practicing in the foster home/adoption field. She worked with prospective adoptive parents during the time they meet the child they decide to adopt from the foster care system. She utilizes a brief systemic model of therapy. In her approach, the client is the expert and we work with the strengths and resources the client already possesses. In this approach (solution-focused therapy is one model of systemic therapy she uses), she and her client’s look at what has worked in the past and what was the client doing differently to achieve these exceptions when the "problem" was not present or controlling the client's life. A very similar model is the Narrative approach (client and therapist discuss an "ideal future" and look for the "unique outcomes" when the problem is not so present in the client's life. In this model, metaphors are used during the conversation. In solution-focused...
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...vivid description of Boston shows the environment in which Malcolm was now living amongst. Wanting to fit in, Malcolm purchases a zoot suit, “Shark skin gray, with a big, long coat, and pants ballooning out at the knees and then tapering down down to the cuffs so narrow that i had to take off my shoes to get them on and off.” (61) Malcolm wanted to show the popular style at the time, but also that he was adapting to the Boston style. He also starts dancing, specifically lindy-hopping, he said, “It was as though somebody had clicked on a light.” (60) This use of figurative language shows how comfortable and natural dancing was for him, and it contributes to the power of the text by showing that dancing was a way for Malcolm to be himself. As Malcolm gets more comfortable in Boston, he starts getting himself into trouble. He gets involved in drugs and drinking, “I had gotten to the stage where every day I used enough drugs--reefers, cocaine, or both--so that i felt above any worries, any strains.” (150) Drugs were a way for him to live freely and forget him problems, but it became a serious addiction that he couldn’t save himself from. “I had gotten to the point where I was walking on my own coffin.” (149) He’s saying that he’s living his life very dangerously and could result in death. This contributes to the power and beauty of the text by showing how Malcolm no longer cherished his own life because of the drugs and alcohol corrupting him and not allowing him to think clearly...
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...Women: A Personal Worldview Narrative An individual’s worldview may originate from how and manner through which knowledge and understanding are offered and obtained. A world view in my opinion, worldview is an introspective view on how everyday activities are color, organized, filtered, and interpreted in regards to personal cultural perceptions. Additionally, my worldview, which continues to develop, is an interpersonal process, which began when I was a young man in rural society of Africa and subsequently in civilized society of Europe, Asia and America. Thinking about the concept of worldview found me rendering deep thoughts about my life so far. Why? One may ask; well, the total sum of my worldview is directly and indirectly shaped by the different assumed and certain roles women plaid in my life. These experiences gave me a unique interpretation of the world. Fifteen years was the age I realized that my culture is one that discriminates against women. It is a culture where women are viewed as property and used only to satisfy the sexual libido of their male counterparts; a culture where women has no opinion either in the family or society, except for that of their husband if married and father’s if unmarried; and finally a culture where female genital cutting is still practiced. Ultimately, there is no potential for women to actually have and fulfill a dream. In such culture, there were three women-my mother, and two grandmas. Domestic violence, abusive behavior, and...
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