Group Process Paper

Group Participation

 The main target population in this group project will be women with postpartum depression. Postpartum depression is a medical condition largely associated with women who have given birth in the last twelve months (Miller, 2002). Therefore, the major target of this group activity will be women who have given birth in the last 12 months. For one to qualify as participants in this study, she must show the following symptoms associated with postpartum depression. One of the characteristic that the participant should have is feeling overwhelmed. The women to participate in the study should be those who feel they cannot manage to handle responsibilities associated with being a new mother, as they are too much for them. Secondly, they should be feeling guilty of how they handle their motherhood responsibilities, as they feel they should be doing better than there are doing presently (O'Hara, 2009). People with postpartum depression feels that their children should get the better care they are providing them, and this is a characteristic that the women expected to participate in the study should possess.

            The target women should be feeling nothing, whereby, they have feelings of numbness and emptiness. Also, they should be feeling sad from the depth of their soul for no apparent reason, resulting in them regularly crying (Miller, 2002). On the other hand, they should be feeling not bonded to their babies, as they should be as mothers. Furthermore, they should be feeling helpless, like their situation will never change as far as taking care of their infants is concerned. Additionally, they should be women who after giving birth feel angry or irritated for no reason, whereby, they do not have patience with other people around them (O'Hara, 2009).

            On the other hand, there are needs that the target women will be trying to fulfill so that they can qualify as participants in this group project. One of the needs will be trying to overcome stress associated with being new mothers. Mothers with postpartum depression usually show high levels of depression, and they need support from the professionals so as to overcome stress to play their role as mothers effectively (Field, 2010). Thus, they should be willing to get help to enable them to live a stress-free life as mothers. They should also be looking forward to accepting their children and having strong motherly bonds with them. According to Miller (2002), mothers with postpartum depression usually have problems when it comes to accepting their children, thereby; it is difficult for them to form strong bonds with them. Hence, they need professional help so as to overcome this challenge so as to form strong bonds with their babies. Finally, they should be trying to avoid being angry or sad for no reason. Field (2010) reveals that mothers with postpartum depression usually face huge challenges when it comes to managing their anger due to them being impatient with those around them. Hence, the target participants should be willing to accept help so as to learn how to relate with those around them in a healthy way.

Group Goals and Objectives

There are various goals and objectives that will be attained by participating in this group project. The goals and objectives are as follows;

Ø  Acquiring knowledge, attitudes and skills that contribute towards effective learning within the skill and across life as far as the postpartum depression is concerned.

Ø  Understanding challenges encountered by mothers with postpartum depression.

Ø  Provide counseling to women with postpartum depression so that they can become effective mothers.

Ø  After the group project, the students participating in it will be able to relate school with life experiences.

Ø  Acquire skills needed to investigate the world of work as far as self-knowledge is concerned, and making informed decisions in the career.

Ø  Understanding the relationship that exists between educations, training and personal qualities, and the work of employment.

Ø  Acquiring knowledge, interpersonal skills and attitudes needed to understand as well as respect oneself and others in the society.

Ø  Understanding some of the challenges to expect in the place of work, especially when dealing with customers in the workplace setting.

Ø  Understanding the safety as well as survival skills in the place of work.

Type of Membership

            The main members of the group will be five students who will be responsible for providing counseling to mothers with postpartum depression. The second set of members of the group will be mothers who have postpartum depression. The purposive sampling approach will be used to select the group participants, especially the mothers with postpartum depression. One of the qualifications for the mothers to participate in this study will be that one should have given birth in the last twelve months. Second, the individual should show signs of having postpartum depression. The main aim of using purposive sampling technique will be to avoid having mothers without postpartum depression condition taking part in this group activity as this will be a waste of time as well as resources. Furthermore, those who will be members of the group will be required to provide an informed consent indicating that they agree to participate in all the group session out of their personal will, but not through coercion. In this case, before selecting the participants, they will be informed about their rights and allowed to make a decision on whether to continue with group participation or not. They will be advised about the goals of the group so as to be in a position to make an informed decision.

            A group of 40 women with postpartum depression will be allowed to take part in this group activity.  It is crucial to note that the group membership will be closed, and it will not be any participant. For anyone to qualify as a member, she should meet all the selection criteria outlined in the selection procedures. The member should also have the characteristics outlined about mothers with postpartum depression so as to participate in the group activities. Finally, the member should have the appropriate documentation to show that she is part of the group to avoid unqualified members taking part in its activities.

Role of the Leader/Co-leader

 The group will have a leader and co-leader who will be responsible for playing different roles aimed at making sure the goals and objectives of the group will be attainable. One of the roles of the group leader will be providing leadership to the group. The leader will be responsible for providing direction to the group member on what they are supposed to different situations so as to attain their objectives. Second, the leader and the co-leader will be responsible for ensuring that all group rules are followed at all times so as to ensure that everything is carried out within the confines of the laid down procedures and rules. Also, the group leader/co-leader will be responsible for ensuring that there is harmony within the group. The leader will help in resolving conflicts among the group participants to avoid their disputes impacting negatively on the ability of the group to accomplish its objectives and goals. Furthermore, the group leader will be responsible for guiding the members in making major decisions affecting the way the group is operated. Finally, it is the role of the leader to ensure that all the participants are highly motivated so that they can manage to participate in all the group's programs and sessions successfully.

Theoretical Approach

            The Adlerian theoretical approach will be used during the participants' interactions with the students who will be involved in providing counseling on their health conditions. The theory was created by Adler Alfred. Its main focus is on creating a therapeutic relationship, which is positive, interactive, and encouraging to the target patients (Carlson and Sperry, 2005). The students who will be counseling the mothers with postpartum depression will target to have therapeutic interactions that are positive and encouraging in nature so that they can overcome some of the major causes their prevailing health conditions. When using this theoretical approach the counselor assists a patient to understand and question how their past life events, as well as hidden objectives, have lead to their prevailing lifestyle. Therefore, use of the theory will help those who will be providing counseling to mothers with postpartum depression to understand some of their behaviors in life that could be the cause of the problems associated with this psychological problem, that impact negatively on their ability to be effective mothers. The theory will help in ensuring mothers are motivated to overcome inferiority, insecurity feelings, thereby, developing pride and confidence for being mothers (Carlson and Sperry, 2005). They will be able to overcome negative mental states associated with their conditions of giving birth.

Format

            The group will be made of 45 members, five of them will be students who will be offering counseling services to the participants, while, forty of them will be the participants’ whole will be mothers who have given birth in the last twelve months and show signs of postpartum depression. The group sessions will be held within five days in a week. The sessions will be held on Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays.  The group meetings will be held from 13.00 pm to 17.00pm. Thus, the meetings will be held for about 3 hours on a daily basis. The group meetings are expected to last for two months so that all the set objectives and goals can be attained. 

Group Rules

            There are different rules established by the group members. They should be followed by all the members in the course of undertaking all the group related activities. The rules are as follows;

Ø  All the participants, mothers with postpartum depression will be expected to provide documentations needed to prove that they are allowed to be part of the group activities.

Ø  All the members, especially the students will be expected to participate in all the group session without failure, unless due to justifiable lessons.

Ø  All members are expected to maintain high levels of discipline and should respect the authority of the group leader.

Ø  The members will be expected to work in harmony and respect the privacy of the participants.

Ø  The participants' rights should be respected at all times, such as confidentiality, privacy, and others.

Ø  Any disagreement within the group should be resolved amicably by the group leader.

Ø  Anyone who is not satisfied with anything associated with the group activities or processes is supposed to communicate about the issue during the group sessions.

Ø  All the group sessions should be conducted in a professional way and directed towards attaining the group’s goals and objectives.

Ø  All communications in the group should be written and communicated either through email, memo or messages to the members.

Group Session Plan

Session 1

            Theme: Introducing the participants to the concept of postpartum depression. In this session, the students acting as counselors in the group will provide detailed information to the participants about causes of this health conditions and symptom associated with it. This will form the theoretical basis of the helping the participants understand the causes the condition they have so as to start the therapy process. This activity will suit in the group as this will be an introduction session, where, the participants should understand why they have postpartum depression. 

            Goals and Objectives: The objective will help the participants understand the concept of postpartum depression.

            Activity Description: A power point presentation will be provided to the participants as well as publication on the concept of postpartum depression provided to them.

            Leader Roles and Responsibilities: The group leader will be responsible for providing direction during the entire session.

            Evaluation: Questionnaires will be issued to the participants to measure the success of the session.

Session 2

            Theme: Understanding behaviors and attitudes associated with postpartum depression. The session will involve the mothers describing some of the behaviors and attitudes they have due to postpartum depression. This will form the basis of determining the therapy they need to overcome their conditions. 

Goals and Objectives: The objective will help the participants understand attitudes and behaviors associated with postpartum depression.

            Activity Description: Participants will be allowed to share their experience with others, such as to understand attitudes and behaviors related to postpartum depression.

            Leader Roles and Responsibilities: The group leader will be responsible for guiding the entire session.

            Evaluation: Questionnaires will be issued to the participants to measure the success of the session.

Session 3

            Theme: Informing the participants about the dangers of having postpartum depression. The session will involve the counselors informing the participants why they should be weary of having postpartum depression as mothers. The theme is appropriate as at this stage the participants will have adequate information about the causes and symptoms and now will need to know the dangers of having the condition. Hence, this will form the basis of preparing for a therapy session on how to help them deal with the problem at hand.

Goals and Objectives: The objective will help the participants comprehend the dangers associated with postpartum depression.

 Activity Description: PowerPoint presentation will be used to help the participants understand the concept of dangers of having postpartum depression as a mother. 

            Leader Roles and Responsibilities: The group leader will be responsible for guiding the entire session.

            Evaluation: Discussion between counselor and participants will be used to measure the success of the session.

Session 4

            Theme: Informing of the mothers about help available to them to deal with postpartum depression. The participants will be informed how the counselors will take them through the various group as well as individual sessions so that they can overcome the problem associated with postpartum depression. 

Goals and Objectives: The objective will help the participants comprehend the dangers associated with postpartum depression.

            Activity Description: PowerPoint presentation will be used to help the participants understand the help available to them so as to deal postpartum depression as mothers.

            Leader Roles and Responsibilities: The group leader will be responsible for guiding the entire session.

            Evaluation: Discussion between counselor and participants will be used to measure the success of the session.