A Dangerous Son - Prof. Schenk PDF

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Carleton University

A Dangerous Son

Erik Ross SOWK 2301 Prof. Schenk April 12, 2021

Children are always talked about being the future of this world and that we need to set them up so that they can reach their highest potential. Of course, some children’s potentials will be higher than others, but it is those kids, whose potentials are not being reached that we need to focus more on and give them the help they need to succeed. From the film “A Dangerous Son” the film crew followed numerous children who were viewed as dangers to themselves and to others. Many of these children suffered from mental health issues and were in and out of doctor offices. In the film there was one child who stood out to me the most. The 10-year-old boys name was Ethan and he lived with his single mother and little sister who was 8. Ethan caught my eye because I could tell that he really wanted to get better but there were a lot of things in his life that were just holding him back. There are many steps that I would have taken with assessing Ethan. I would first take a look at his family life and how things are going at home. From what I have witness I would see that Ethan is a misunderstood child who means well and cares for others but just does not understand how to control his emotion and temper. This is very important in my assessment because I also am aware that Ethan suffers from a serious emotional disturbance which doesn’t help the fact that he is also on the spectrum. He has a very hard time not lashing out at his mother and sister and even to the point of making death threats towards them. Even though Ethan can be very physical and aggressive towards others he also shows that he can be extremely loving and can also be responsible. At one point in the film Ethan’s mother sends him off to a residential treatment house where he seems to be getting a lot better. This is what is refer to as a structural determinant. By placing Ethan in this treatment facility, his mother is hoping that he will learn basic social skills and will be able to understand why he acts out and how to refrain from doing so with steps.

These treatment homes are becoming extremely rare with on 60,000 public bed open to the mentally ill. Once back at home he still shows signs where he lashes out and has mental breakdowns but with the one on one treatment that he received, he was able to open up more and be himself with someone yelling back at him. I realized that the environment that Ethan is coming up in is very family oriented and I can tell that his mother wants the best for him, I just do not think that she has the right patience and skills to do so. From what I have watched in the film it is clear to see that what seems to set Ethan off his having authority argue back with him. Another way that she can help solidify their relationship is for her to show more of an interest in his hobbies and to supporting him with whatever he sets his mind to; “Praise them when they do well. Recognize their efforts as well as what they achieve” (Caring for Kids, 2017). Now, I am not saying that the mother is to blame for Ethan’s actions an behaviours but what I am trying to say is that I think that his mother needs to understand that he is dealing with mental health issues and that to get him to do things, it may take him a bit longer to do them or to acknowledge it. In a lot of cases this is new to parent and more than often they do not know how to deal with those kinds of situations because, well, they themselves have never been through it. It must be very difficult for the mother because she blames herself for what has happened to her child. That might have to do with the fact that she has him on ten different medications at the same time while he is only 10. I understand why we medicate people and I know that in a lot of cases these medications help. I find it extremely difficult to grasp the idea of giving children medication that are just being thrown their way. The majority of the time that doctors prescribe a medication, they look at the symptoms of the chid and try and find the best match. At one point in the film one of the mothers said that these kids were guinea pigs. These children are too young to have their brains

go through all of that change in such a short period of time. The sad part is, is that these kids need to be medicated with something in order for them to participate in society and to not be a danger to themselves and to other around them. One of the most concerning this that I gathered from watching the film is just how dark some of Ethan’s thoughts really were. With mental illness being a lead contributor to deviance against themselves and others, it is not surprising that he thinks the way he does. He is constant making death threats against others and seems to have a fascination with heaven and hell. This is one of the many symptoms of depression especially seen with the youth; “Severe depression can include thoughts of harming oneself or others” (Schenk, 2021). He explains that he needs to treat people better in order for him to get into heaven because hell is where they have control over you. It is easy to see that he experiences dark thoughts, but usually only when he is throwing a tantrum or right after. From what I was able to see, he was very thoughtful and respectful at all other times. If I were to work with Ethan, I would explore the path of depression and bi-polar disease because from what I have seen it is obvious that he is experiencing early signs of both those disease. It is never easy to deal with something that you cannot control but especially as a kid where you have no concept of what is actually going on inside there heads. From what I had seen about Ethan I do not believe that he lashes out due to trauma from his past or current life. His mother seems to be a hard-working lady who will do whatever it takes to take care of her children. Ethan’s development and behaviour can be linked to his early childhood development. There are four domains of development and Ethan just so happens to fall under the socioemotional domain. In this domain it is often seen that trust and emotional security play a giant role in why someone like Ethan may lash out. I believe that he trusts his mom because well, he is

only 10 years old, so it is not like he necessarily has a chose; “Time together is how you get to know about each other’s experiences, thoughts, feelings and changing interests” (Raising Children Network, 2020). Within this domain is also emotional domain and self-regulation. Both can be seen through Ethan as he is clearly bi-polar and does not know how to control his feelings and emotions so instead he will turn it into a rage and turn physical. If I were to work with Ethan, I would first need to get to know what sets him off and to move away from whatever those things are. It would also be important to work on empathy towards others and what he says and does to people can have a consequence and that he is not the only person living in his household. Although it may not look like it, but Ethan is actually a loving young boy who has a very close relationship with his mother. It is quite clear to see that because Ethan is the man of the house, he relies heavily on his mother, which for a 10-year-old boy makes sense; Other parents live in more challenging circumstances that make having a baby and caring for a baby much more difficult. A traumatic birth, a premature baby who requires much more intensive care, or a baby with health concerns” (Schenk, 2021). I think for Ethan the biggest root attachment that he shows is that he needs to be loved. He needs his mother to tell him that she loves and cares for him. This might be one of the reasons that he is lashing out. In this case I would make it known to Ethan that he does belong, and his mother will always love him no matter what. The biggest thing is that he works on controlling his anger when his mother or authority tells him no. He cannot have everything his way. It is extremely important to set copping mechanisms when dealing with someone like Ethan who has random meltdowns. By doing so, some of these steps such as taking a breath, think about what you are going to say, apologising, will make him think before he acts and could benefit him immensely. When Ethan does get argumentative and has an episode it is important

for the mother to try and remain calm and to not stoop to his level; “Be empathetic. Empathy means listening and acknowledging their struggle without judgment” (Milam, 2018). In order for me to build a relationship with Ethan I would need him to trust me and I would stress that it is okay to make mistakes just as long as he learns from them. I would also want him to know that it is okay and normal to lash out and get angry sometimes, but he has to know how to cope with those feelings; “Another important aspect of supporting the development of selfregulation is supporting children and youth to understand their own feelings and helping them identify what it feels like to be calm and experiencing an appropriate level of alertness” (Schenk, 2021). I think a big part in Ethan’s development that I would want to target, and change would be to get him to open up more and express his feelings instead of keeping everything bottled up. I would set boundaries that he could implement in his day to day life with regards to his mother and sister. If Ethan were to follow my intervention and my plan, I strongly believe that he can turn out to a be a great young man who can reach whatever goal he has in mind. He just needs to surround himself with people who really care about him and want to see him get better. I would recommend that he continues to seek counselling and treatment. I also think that it would be a great idea if he were to join a group of some sort. Whether it be a sports team, a club or something where he can surround himself with other kids his age. Another reason why I think a sports team can be very beneficial to Ethan is because he may finally find himself a role model ad or mentor that can give him that father figure role that he cannot get at home.

References

Schenk, A. 2021. Working with Children and Youth, SOWK 2301, Carleton University. Your child's mental health. (2017). Retrieved April 11, 2021, from https://www.caringforkids.cps.ca/handouts/mentalhealth/mental_health Positive relationships for parents and children: how to build them. (2020). Retrieved April 1, 2021, from https://raisingchildren.net.au/newborns/connectingcommunicating/bonding/parent-child-relationships Milam, S. 2018. When My Son with Autism Melts Down, Here’s What I Do. Retrieved April 11, 2021, from https://www.healthline.com/health/autism/what-to-do-autismmeltdown...