Reference no: EM133982892

CASE SCENARIO: THE ALVA FAMILY

The patient, Mari Alva, is a 33-year-old woman who presents to your outpatient psychiatric clinic with worsening anxiety, sleep disturbance, and episodes of panic over the past four months. She is a single mother to a 9-year-old son, Mat. Mari works as a medical assistant and lives with her mother, Elen (59), who helps with childcare.

Family Background: Mari reports that anxiety "runs in the family." Her mother, Elen, has a long history of generalized anxiety disorder that was never formally treated. Her father, Carl (63), died two years ago from complications of alcohol use disorder. He struggled with alcohol dependence for most of his adult life, and Mari recalls significant marital conflict between her parents when she was growing up.

Mari has one older brother, Lu (36), who lives nearby. He has a history of depression but is stable on medication. Lu is married and has two young children. Mari describes her relationship with him as "supportive but distant." Maximize your scores with our expert assignment help - get help now!

Elen is also the oldest of four siblings. One sister died of breast cancer at 42; the other siblings have hypertension but no major psychiatric diagnoses. Carl's side of the family includes several relatives with alcohol use disorder.

Presenting Concern: Mari wants to understand whether her symptoms are related to hereditary factors or stress from single parenting, financial strain, and grief over her father's death. You decide that constructing a three-generation genogram will help illuminate mental health patterns and guide treatment.

Using the Alva family information:

Question 1. Draw a three-generation genogram including Mari, her parents, grandparents (as information allows), siblings, and child.

Question 2. Indicate major medical, psychiatric, and substance-use patterns, as well as relevant family relationships (close, conflicted, cut-off)

Question 3. Include a Key or Legend: Include brief explanatory comments, as well as a "key" (legend) that explains the symbols you've used to construct your genogram.