Case Study
Patient Demographic: Initial Intake: Age: 28 Sex: Female Gender: Female Sexuality: Heterosexual Ethnicity: Caucasian Relationship Status: Married Counseling Setting: Private Practice Type of Counseling: Couple
Mental Status Exam: The couple appear to be their stated ages with positive signs of self-care related to hygiene and dress. Both individuals appear overweight for height, and John appears to visually be categorizable as obese. Both individuals presented with congruent affect to their stated moods. Neither demonstrated retardation, spasticity, or hyperactivity of motor activity. The couple present as cooperative, open, and forthcoming, though each frequently looks at the other and confirms that the information they are presenting individually is accurate. Jane is noted to be caregiving of and highly empathetic to John. John is noted to respond appropriately to Jane’s statements. Neither presents with reports of suicidal ideations, thoughts of harm to self or others, or difficulties with memory, judgement, or concentration. 
Presenting Problem: You are a counselor in a private practice setting.  Your client, Jane, is 28 years old and presents with her spouse, John, a 24 year-old Hispanic male for “problems communicating.” The couple report that they have been married for one year after cohabitating for one year prior to marriage. Immediately after their marriage they began trying to become pregnant. They state they sought help from a specialist after several months and on learning that some degree of infertility existed, Jane began hormone therapy. Jane notes that it was soon after this time that the communication problems between them began. She tells you that it was at this point that she and John realized that they may not be able to have a biological child together. John acknowledges that Jane has tried many times over the last year to bring up this topic for discussion, but he chooses not to engage her.  He tells you that he tends to believe that “if I don’t think about it, it will probably go away.” Jane agrees with John and reports that over time, the couple have talked less and spend much less time together. John agrees and says that sometimes “I may not say more than five words to Jane in a day.”  Jane reports that they have not been intimate in over two months. When completing the intake paperwork, John endorsed no problems on any symptom criteria. Jane reported “serious” problems with “feeling sad, loss of interest in things she previously enjoyed, crying spells, and stress. She reported “moderate” problems with “feelings of worthlessness, anxiety, loss of appetite, and sleep disturbance. The couple states they were to sign divorce papers last week but made the decision to try counseling first. Neither has participated in counseling previously.
Other Contexts: Family History:
The couple currently live with Jane’s 10 year-old son from her previous marriage and Jane’s 75 year-old grandfather, for whom the couple provide care. Jane owns and operates a small shop, is completing her bachelor’s degree, cares for her grandfather, and parents her son, who is heavily involved in baseball. She describes a history of hypothyroid disease though is no longer taking medication as her disease is now controlled with diet and exercise. She reports taking an antidepressant for two years, approximately seven years ago. She currently is taking Provera and Clomid for infertility and states these have had a noticeable effect on her mood. John reports this is his first marriage and he has no children from prior relationships. He was laid off two years ago and has been working in his uncle’s business, but the family has no insurance. He is actively involved in caring for Jane’s son and grandfather. He reports a history of high blood pressure. Prior to their wedding, John states he experienced irritability, agitation, difficulty sleeping due to “thinking about things” and worry. He was prescribed an SSRI and took this for six months. He tells you it seemed to help but he discontinued it 8 to 9 months ago. He reports that his doctor said his anxiety might have been because of his high blood pressure.

Question: Which of the following counseling skills or interventions should be used during this session?
(A): Redirecting John's attention to Jane's distress
(B): Exploring both families of origin patterns and themes
(C): Psychoeducation on relaxation techniques for John and Jane
(D): Summarizing John's fears about infertility and loss

Correct Answer: Summarizing John's fears about infertility and loss
Explanation: During the individual interview, John openly discussed fears of his own infertility and the loss he would feel if he could not have a child. Because he has not been communicating with Jane, this would be important to summarize with John so that Jane can become more aware of his fears and emotional reaction to their infertility issues. This provides an opportunity for these issues to be discussed by the couple during sessions, while x John has not yet identified his feelings and actions to Jane so this intervention would not be appropriate at this time. Relaxation techniques are helpful when working through strong emotions, however, John is not showing strong emotional engagement at this time. Therefore, the correct answer is (A)
Competency: counseling skills and interventions