Week 3

Khalid Nassar – Week Three

Mrs. Nassar started to see a counselor long ago, and her depression and ennui lifted somewhat. Khalid was now almost 4 years of age, and he was starting pre-school at a local day care that also had a school. Khalid was able to speak both Arabic and English. Khalid was often difficult for Mrs. Nassar to handle, and Mr. Nassar was usually away on deliveries. In fact, Mr. and Mrs. Nassar rarely saw one another. Mrs. Nassar hoped that the pre-school would help Khalid.

* What are the major developmental milestones for a 44 month old (Khalid is almost 4)? What should Khalid be doing physically, cognitively, and emotionally at this point?

* What else is important for you to know about Khalid’s family at this point? (Hint: Think about all that you don’t currently know about the family that could be helpful for you with regard to demographic information.)un

Week 2

Khalid Nassar – Week Two

At 9 months old, Khalid seemed to be a happy, healthy baby, just as the other children had been. As far as Mrs. Nassar was concerned, in any case. In general, she had provided her child, she thought, all that she had her other children. She wasn’t able to notice the many mornings she sat staring straight ahead, hearing the distant cries of her newborn. There were mornings when it was literally painful to get out of bed. Sometimes, Khalid would cry for hours until he wore himself out.   

Mrs. Nassar was able to notice in herself feelings of regret, rage, and guilt at the fact that she had lived while her family had died. If only things had stayed the way there were! She would not be in this situation, and she wouldn’t have to be living in the country that she held responsible for the killings.

* Write a developmentally appropriate narrative for the two girls (10 and 11) and the little boy (8) about having a new brother.

* Write a developmentally appropriate narrative about how Mr. & Mrs. Nassar might have explained to their children why they had to come to the U.S.

* What should Khalid be doing physically, cognitively, and emotionally at 9-months of age? Are there aspects of his development at this point that we might legitimately expect to be “culture bound?”

* What is the effect of maternal depression on the infant?

DECISION POINT

 
* Does Mrs. Nassar avail herself of Western mental health treatment? In other words, does she go see a professional counselor, clinical social worker, or psychiatrist? Outline her hypothetical thought process given the decision you make. 

For the first post, each group will learn some information about each person’s family of origin. This should aid each group in beginning to imagine their respective adoptee. While some of the information may at first appear to be unrelated to our subject of study, life-span issues for individuals with disabilities, fear not. It will all make sense as we move through the semester. 

Khalid Nassar – Week One

The Nassar family moved to the United States just one week before the overthrow of the regime in their native Iraq. They later learned that most of their family had been killed by a gang of armed men who claimed to be representing a political faction different from that in the Nassar’s small town. They brought with them two daughters and a son, and Mrs. Nassar had just learned that she was pregnant. She was at once joyous and in despair as she began to realize that she would never see her father and mother again. Mr. Nassar found a job driving a delivery truck, and the family lived in a small house that was adjacent to the town’s housing projects. Mrs. Nassar did not adjust well to life in the U.S., and she cried constantly. She would go for days without eating, and most days it was hard just to get out of bed. The girls were in school, and the little boy spent most of his time with some kids on his street. Add to it the fact that she felt unwelcome in her town owing to, she thought, her full head covering that was part of her religious observation.  

What might be going on for Mrs. Nassar with regard to her mental health? 

Are there medications that could help Mrs. Nassar that are safe to take during pregnancy?  

How is it that someone who is a strict Muslim might approach such symptoms? Would she be more or less likely to seek Western psychiatric treatment given her cultural background?

Welcome!