Amarika's Trauma Case Study

Subsequently following being exposed to her mother’s shooting, Amarika experienced many life changes, secondary adversities, and reminders of the trauma that she experienced. In addition, Amarika faced many risk factors in association with the aftermath of the traumatic event. Also, she experienced many protective factors that helped her slowly return to a regulated state. In discussing the facts of the case and their relation to the risk factors and protective factors, the parallels to the secondary adversities, changes in family life, and reminders of the trauma will become more evident. The focus of this paper is the core concept that traumatic events may cause changes in one’s family life, reminders the traumatic experience, and additional adversities in relation to the
At Amarika’s level, she is experiencing change in her own life and in her family. With her mother in the hospital, she is experiencing the loss of her protective figure. Her current symptoms affect her also, which include difficulty eating, difficulty sleeping, and tantrums. The distress felt by her family is a risk present in Amarika’s social environment. Mrs. Lawrence believes that it is necessary that she stay with her daughter at the hospital as much as possible for fear that she may die. With her grandmother gone everyday, Amarika is experiencing a loss of two protective figures in her life. Also, when Mrs. Lawrence is home, she is experiencing a normal amount of distress related to her daughter being shot. Amarika’s home environment is currently one of distress because of the emotional state of the family in reaction to the trauma. On a sociopolitical level, Amarika will also face reminders of the trauma because of the continuing gang violence in her neighborhood. These risk factors stemming from Makisha’s shooting cause Amarika to be vulnerable to trauma related