FAMILY PSYCHODYNAMICS Family is a social unit consisting of parents and the children they raise. Values maybe formed within each family and it may vary depending on race, culture, religion and others. These values or beliefs may be passed down from generation to generation and may reflect the family‟s attitude towards certain situations. This just means that a person is strongly influenced on how they were brought up by their own family and these should be taken into consideration especially on how they interact with the society as well as their attitude towards health and wellness. The Sanchez-Bravo family is classified as unilaterally extended family with mostly young adults. The household is composed of 10 family members. Manuel, the index patient is a retired barangay social development officer. Few months prior the visit he met an accident which caused him to have difficulty in ambulation which required him to just stay at home. He had no known other medical illness before; he just claimed that he is an alcohol beverage drinker. Due to our visits, he was diagnosed Stage 1 Hypertension and Dyslipidemia.
He was open about his life and that he had past marriages. He had other
children with other women, 2 children in his second legal wife, both currently living at the United States and doesn‟t have any communication anymore. He has another son (Manuel son (Manuel Jr.) on other woman that he was not married to, currently a seaman and was helping him in his financial needs like medications, but this is not a regular basis. He claimed that Manuel Jr. is his “favorite” son; this may be due to the financial capacity of the said son. In relation to this, Tatay Manuel would always wait for his son‟s advice advice and give the authority to decide regarding his treatment. The family would always wait for the decision of Manuel Jr., and they will not proceed for any treatment that would involve a large amount of money.
His current family was aware of his past; they have met each other and have a good relationship. Tatay Manuel being a social officer had met many people in the barangay, he is slightly famous and that he claims that many women likes him. Due to his “macho” image, he was tempted to have another affair. He had 2 other affairs while he is married to Priscilla, one is a neighbor but their relationship did not last long. Another affair was with a barangay worker, they were always together at work that brought them to a relationship. He left his wife Priscilla and his family and live with the woman whom she met at the barangay. They stay in one roof for years without any hesitation but he still gives financial support to his children. When asked, Tatay Manuel would not give a definite answer to why he left his family and moved on to another woman. He just kept on saying that, women are the one who would approach him and because of that he cannot resist them. Since Tatay Manuel had a history of being a womanizer, he portrays a machismo pride that having affair to women makes him a real man. Unfortunately, he met an accident, he slipped on the floor, his lower back and knees were affected. Due to the accident, he was forced to stop working and just stay at home. His children got concerned about his health so they decided to bring Tatay Manuel back to their home. His live-in partner cannot also take care of him due to financial constrains. Finally, Tatay Manuel was living again with her children and Nanay Priscilla. At home, Tatay Manuel doesn‟t want to talk to Nanay Priscilla, they just talk if someone asks question and that‟s it. He doesn‟t want to lower his pride and be the one to apologize for whatever happened between them. On the other hand, Nanay Priscilla accepts him for the sake of their children. She is willing to forgive Tatay Manuel if he will just apologize and talk to her. But, there is still bitterness on the side of Nanay Priscilla because of the emotional pain that she experienced and also she became the breadwinner of the family when Tatay Manuel left them. Tatay Manuel said that the time hasn‟t come yet for them to fix things
and that they just want to leave behind whatever issues they have with each other. Today, the financial needs of Tatay Manuel is from his daughters May and Khay. They are the ones who support Tatay Manuel because his other son from another woman doesn‟t regularly give him money. Tatay Manuel and his children have a good relationship and hoping that someday their parents will settle whatever issues they have. rd
Nanay Priscilla, the 3 wife of Tatay Manuel, has a sari-sari store which is the main source of income. She is busy all day long managing the store. She had no known medical illness until some few visits; she was also diagnosed Hypertension Stage 2 and Dyslipidemia. After knowing her illnesses, she is willing to comply with her medications. Even though they don‟t have enough savings, she still tries to buy her everyday medications. At home, she is not only a mother but also a father to her children. She takes care of everything and she still supports her 2 children in their financial needs in school. On the other hand, she let her children be responsible for Tatay Manuel, for his medications, etc. because she is more focused on how they will earn money. She has a cold heart for Tatay Manuel and she admits it openly. She is emotionally drained from all the heartaches that Tatay Manuel caused her. She can forgive but cannot easily forget the past. Nanay Priscilla is a strong woman, despite all the hardships that she went through, she still persevere to raise the family. Marlon, the eldest child is a high school graduate. He is currently unemployed and cannot help the family financially. According to Nanay Priscilla, he quits easily on every job that he had experienced, she stated as “madali siyang magsawa, parang batang isip”. Furthermore he has difficulty in interacting with his co-workers. Nanay Priscilla assumed that he has a certain kind of mental disorder due to these instances. However, he tries to help in doing the household chores and that Nanay Priscilla just let him do whatever he wants to do.
Finella Khay, the third child, is a college graduate. She now works at Pizza Hut as a crew. She helps in financial needs of the family and the medications of Tatay Manuel. But sometimes, she just gives money if she wants to. Pamela May, the fourth child, is already married and has 2 kids, but at present she is also pregnant. She still lives with the family with her husband Sammy and 2 children, Vench and Vanheussen. She is an employee of the barangay but in the meantime she is on leave, but she is still receiving an allowance which will also be contributed to the family. Pamela is the „coordinator‟ of the family; she knows everything about what‟s happening to each and everyone. Even though she has already a family of her own, she still finds time to help her siblings. Her husband Sammy is also unemployed at the moment. But before he resigned, Sammy also helps in the financial needs of the family. He is also the caregiver of Tatay Manuel, even though he is only a son in law, still, he treats Tatay Manuel as his own father. Rheygie, the fifth child, is a college student. He admits that he is gay and that the family accepts him for being like that. At first, Tatay Manuel does not agree with his gender orientation but eventually he learned to accept him. If he has no class, he helps in their sari-sari store; it is his contribution at the moment for he cannot help the family financially. Anthea, the youngest child, is a highschool student. According to Nanay Priscilla, she is diligent in school. Even though she has many suitors, she remains focused in her studies. According to the APGAR score, the family is highly functional. It revealed that Tatay Manuel and Nanay Priscilla have a good relationship. But as mentioned above, they have certain issues that make their relationship dysfunctional. It seems that the family is not aware that these
issues are hindrances that can really help Tatay Manuel to be able to fully regain from his condition. The Sanchez-Bravo family is an example of a typical Filipino family who helps one another in every way they can, and makes the family the priority above anything else. They are not financial blessed but still persevere and always hopes for the best. They may have arguments/misunderstandings but they try to fix them as a family. They share each other‟s problem and find a way to solve it and despite the circumstances that they had been through, they still stand strong.
