Effects of Trauma

Part 1

1. Lets talk about Marilyn. What were your thoughts and reactions to her case as described in the book? Do you think she can ever have a successful intimate relationship? What needs to be done for this to happen?

Marilyn has suffered so much, and it is saddening to know that her body has started to attack itself. The trauma she suffered and her being unaware of it has made her fearful, and her autoimmune system is working overtime, leading to her starting to lose her vision. Childhood trauma is more devastating, especially when it comes to incest. The child grows up having blocked the trauma they suffered, and when they grow up, they are unaware of what happened to them since they blocked it out (Van der Kolk, 2014). One feels sad and enraged on her behalf because she was a child when she was abused, and her escape was her hiding her head in the clouds, which has resulted in adulthood trauma that she cannot explain.

Marilyn can have a successful intimate relationship. However, she needs to be open about her past with her partner and let them know what happened to her. At the moment, she should avoid having any intimate relations because she has not worked on her trauma. Since she still struggles to remember what happened to her, she will still attack her intimate partner when their bodies touch at night. The worst will be that she might never be present during lovemaking, like when she was in college. Marilyn will take time before she can have an intimate working relationship. Her relationships comprise of her being unaware and her losing focus of what is happening.

Therapy is the only way she can recover and manage to have an intimate relationship. Therapy teaches her how to cope with what happened to her in the past and what is happening in the present. Learning calming techniques allows her not to become overwhelmed with what is happening around her, enabling her to remain present. Using the calming techniques, she can become intimate with her partner, and she wont lose focus or escape allowing her to recall and enjoy the moment. The second way is being mindful of her surroundings. Mindfulness enables her to differentiate the past from the present. Making the differentiation is vital as she can now become intimate with a partner and recognize their touch as someone she loves and was spending time with.

2. What is Marilyns world view and why? What is Dr. Van Der Kolks clinical approach to changing someones world view?

Marilyns world view is one where she believes men do not give a damn about other peoples feelings, and they can get away with whatever they want. Women cannot be trusted because they are weak to stand for themselves, and they sell their bodies to get me to care for them. Marilyn was suspicious of everyone who attempted to be kind to her, and she wondered what their motive could be. She was a stickler for regulations, and when anyone tried to make the slightest deviation from the nursing regulations, she would call them out. Her world view of herself was that she was a bad person who made bad things happen to anyone around her. Marilyn did not trust anyone, and she suspected that people had sinister motives that made them be nice to her (Van der Kolk, 2014). Her suspicions made it hard for her to accept people for who they are, and when they make a mistake, she was ready to punish them or make them...

…the United Nations and gave a climate speech addressing the challenges we face in the world. At such a young age, Greta led the world to begin taking action against climate change and challenged world leaders to stop making policies. Instead, they should put their words into action. Her leadership style is symbolic. Greta uses symbolism to address people and demonstrates the need for taking action (Bolman & Deal, 1991). Greta sailed in a yacht to reduce her carbon footprint to attend the 2019 UN Climate Action Summit held in North America. While it might have taken her longer than flying, she demonstrated to the world she was serious about climate change, and it was time that other leaders took the same approach. Symbolism inspires others to do the same, and if a leader can do it, there is no reason why others cannot do it. When a leader takes action and demonstrates it through symbolism, others can easily emulate it since they know and can see how it should be done.

She is a courageous leader who is not fazed by criticism. She took action from the age of 15 by spending her school days outside the Swedish parliament, calling for more decisive action on climate change. Greta was courageous to push her parents to reduce their carbon footprint, and she stood by herself outside parliament with a placard reading School strike for climate that inspired other students to participate in similar protests in their communities. From seeing what she has done and for standing up for our climate, I will apply the same leadership qualities to fight for childhood trauma and to encourage other professionals to begin taking childhood trauma seriously. The best approach is using symbolism, where we can place fliers in critical areas to remind professionals of the…