Assignment task: In the book Harris and Winokeur (2021) Principles and Practice of Grief Counseling: Case Study of Alice talks about self-awareness and reflection.
Alice was 46 years old and sought counseling for what she described as depression and anxiety. In the last 3 years, she had experienced the death of both parents for whom she had been a caregiver, and her wife of 10 years. Her father died of a sudden heart attack and her mother died after living with cancer for many months. Her wife, Mary, died due to surgical complications after a mastectomy. Alice was able to express her feelings of sadness and loss at times, yet her central narrative was that she should "deal with it" and "get over it" and she often felt like a burden to those around her. Mary had 3 adult children from a previous marriage and while they shared a good relationship with Alice, they had recently become more distant after Mary's death. As a result, Alice felt she should act more "in control" in order to support her stepchildren's grief. Additionally, Alice's parents' estate was recently settled. Due to Alice and Mary's relationship, her father had expressly stated that she was not to receive any of his vast estate. All four of Alice's siblings were given a sizeable inheritance, thus creating significant strain in their relationship. Alice felt excluded, invalidated, and angered by the discrimination within her family. Specifically, she felt distressed by her father's homophobia and her sibling's inability to recognize her as family when the estate was being settled. While Alice described feelings of depression, she also explained that she did not sleep well, had lost weight, was having trouble regulating her emotions, and she often did not want to leave the safety of her home. She had maintained her job as a paralegal, yet felt she was underperforming and often did not want to go to work. Alice also disclosed that she often thought about killing herself, as the pain, loss, and loneliness were overwhelming to her.
What attending skill could be used in Alice's case and what steps could you prepare to take in your first session with Alice? Is it possible Alice may feel some resistance to sharing any of her information to the counselor and how could this be addressed in your session?