Introduction
Transition is to change from one thing or situation into another and can also be used to describe the journey taken throughout transformation. Transition can be a positive or negative experience. In this essay the aim is to highlight a time of transition throughout an individual’s life known as, Gemma. The information provided was gathered from an interview carried out by myself. This essay will also briefly focus on Gemma’s background and her differentiating social situation to my own, along with the methods used to carry out the interview. Lastly appropriate and relevant theory will also be applied in relation to Gemma’s experience including a different perspective on this transition and critical factors on the particular theoretical view. By having a clear understanding of theories, it enables practitioners to become more effective during practice (Howe, 2009). Names included in this essay have been amended to accommodate confidentiality and Gemma has given her full consent that the information gathered in the interview process can be shared. Background and Social Differences The individual whom I interviewed for this case study is named, Gemma. She is 42 years old and lives in an area known as Knightswood in Glasgow. She has lived in Knightswood all her life and grew up living with her mum, dad and older brother. Gemma holds a couple of social differences from me. Firstly her age is a differentiating factor, she is a lot older than I am, with me being 24 years old. Gemma’s family structure was also a lot more stable in contrast to my family structure, growing up with divorced parents and splitting my time up to spend time with both of them. Gemma’s current social difference to me would be disability. Gemma has gone through a huge transition, from being able bodied not so long ago to living with a disease known as, ‘Chronic Regional Pain Syndrome’ also known as, CRPS. This disease cannot be cured but can be slightly settled with pain management. I have never been limited with a disability or experienced this type of transition in my life. Gemma explained to me during the interview, what CRPS was as not a lot of people including medical professionals have ever came across this disease before. There is not enough knowledge and understanding of what this really is. Gemma was diagnosed with CRPS about 3 and a half years ago now. This is a disorder of the nerves in the nervous system which she unfortunately picked up through foot surgery after standing on a sea urchin on holiday. It was believed by surgeons that some off the spikes were still inserted into Gemma’s sole of her foot causing most of the pain. It was agreed that Gemma would undergo foot surgery to remove the remains. After surgery it was understood that the healing process would take around 12 weeks. However, the pain lingered on a lot longer than anticipated for Gemma. After lots of transfers and referrals from medical professions …show more content…
Elisabeth Kubler-Ross’s (1969) five stages of grief had a huge impact and breakthrough in the world of theory, although many other theorists had their take on grief and loss such as, John Bowlby and Sigmund Freud. Kubler-Ross’s five stages identifies, denial, anger, bargaining, depression and acceptance, relating well with Gemma’s transition process and all of the feelings Gemma experienced throughout this period (Kubler-Ross & Kessler, 2014). To this day it is believed that many people still revert back and use Kubler-Ross’s five stage model (Webster, 2017). In the book that Kubler-Ross wrote she highlights that loss isn’t, “…just through family and friends, but also in the feelings of loss that come with the inevitable life changes we all endure” (Kubler-Ross & Kessler, 2014, Pg 1). This was important for me to understand through carrying out this interview with Gemma as it allowed me to fully empathize with Gemma’s situation and enabled me to apply the most appropriate theory. Gemma explained to me throughout the interview process that she felt as if she had lost her previous lifestyle and independence, she has had to adapt to her new life of living with CRPS. Each of these five stages from Kubler-Ross’s (1969) model describes exactly what Gemma has went through along her CRPS
Transition is to change from one thing or situation into another and can also be used to describe the journey taken throughout transformation. Transition can be a positive or negative experience. In this essay the aim is to highlight a time of transition throughout an individual’s life known as, Gemma. The information provided was gathered from an interview carried out by myself. This essay will also briefly focus on Gemma’s background and her differentiating social situation to my own, along with the methods used to carry out the interview. Lastly appropriate and relevant theory will also be applied in relation to Gemma’s experience including a different perspective on this transition and critical factors on the particular theoretical view. By having a clear understanding of theories, it enables practitioners to become more effective during practice (Howe, 2009). Names included in this essay have been amended to accommodate confidentiality and Gemma has given her full consent that the information gathered in the interview process can be shared. Background and Social Differences The individual whom I interviewed for this case study is named, Gemma. She is 42 years old and lives in an area known as Knightswood in Glasgow. She has lived in Knightswood all her life and grew up living with her mum, dad and older brother. Gemma holds a couple of social differences from me. Firstly her age is a differentiating factor, she is a lot older than I am, with me being 24 years old. Gemma’s family structure was also a lot more stable in contrast to my family structure, growing up with divorced parents and splitting my time up to spend time with both of them. Gemma’s current social difference to me would be disability. Gemma has gone through a huge transition, from being able bodied not so long ago to living with a disease known as, ‘Chronic Regional Pain Syndrome’ also known as, CRPS. This disease cannot be cured but can be slightly settled with pain management. I have never been limited with a disability or experienced this type of transition in my life. Gemma explained to me during the interview, what CRPS was as not a lot of people including medical professionals have ever came across this disease before. There is not enough knowledge and understanding of what this really is. Gemma was diagnosed with CRPS about 3 and a half years ago now. This is a disorder of the nerves in the nervous system which she unfortunately picked up through foot surgery after standing on a sea urchin on holiday. It was believed by surgeons that some off the spikes were still inserted into Gemma’s sole of her foot causing most of the pain. It was agreed that Gemma would undergo foot surgery to remove the remains. After surgery it was understood that the healing process would take around 12 weeks. However, the pain lingered on a lot longer than anticipated for Gemma. After lots of transfers and referrals from medical professions …show more content…
Elisabeth Kubler-Ross’s (1969) five stages of grief had a huge impact and breakthrough in the world of theory, although many other theorists had their take on grief and loss such as, John Bowlby and Sigmund Freud. Kubler-Ross’s five stages identifies, denial, anger, bargaining, depression and acceptance, relating well with Gemma’s transition process and all of the feelings Gemma experienced throughout this period (Kubler-Ross & Kessler, 2014). To this day it is believed that many people still revert back and use Kubler-Ross’s five stage model (Webster, 2017). In the book that Kubler-Ross wrote she highlights that loss isn’t, “…just through family and friends, but also in the feelings of loss that come with the inevitable life changes we all endure” (Kubler-Ross & Kessler, 2014, Pg 1). This was important for me to understand through carrying out this interview with Gemma as it allowed me to fully empathize with Gemma’s situation and enabled me to apply the most appropriate theory. Gemma explained to me throughout the interview process that she felt as if she had lost her previous lifestyle and independence, she has had to adapt to her new life of living with CRPS. Each of these five stages from Kubler-Ross’s (1969) model describes exactly what Gemma has went through along her CRPS