Mark and Jacqueline have been married for 30 years. They have grown children who live in another state. Jacqueline’s mother has moved in with the couple because she has Alzheimer’s disease. Jacqueline is an only child and always promised her mother that she would care for her in her old age. Her mother is unaware of her surroundings and often calls out for her daughter Jackie when Jacqueline is in the room. Jacqueline reassures her mother that she is there to help, but to no avail.
Jacqueline is unable to visit her children on holidays because she must attend to her mother’s daily needs. She is reluctant to visit friends or even go out to a movie because of her mother’s care needs or because she is too tired. Even though she has eliminated most leisure activities with Mark, Jacqueline goes to bed at night with many of her caregiving tasks unfinished. She tries to visit with her mother during the day, but her mother rejects any contact with her daughter. Planning for the upcoming holidays seems impossible to Mark, because of his wife’s inability to focus on anything except her mother’s care.
Jacqueline has difficulty sleeping at night and is unable to discuss plans even a few days in advance. She is unable to visit friends and is reluctant to have friends visit because of the unpredictable behavior of her mother and her need to attend to the daily care.
Reflective Questions
1. How do you think this situation reflects Jacqueline’s sense of role performance?
2. How do you think that Jacqueline may be contributing to her own health?
3. Provide examples of behavioral changes (functional, potentially dysfunctional, and dysfunctional) within the health patterns of families.