The goal of this treatment program is to improve Cyntoia Brown’s psychological and emotional health, as it is depicted in the documentary “Murder to Mercy: The Cyntoia Brown Story.” Cyntoia endured severe stress all of her life due to a history of abuse, involvement in sex trafficking, and an early murder conviction. The plan will highlight four main issues, identify the treatment team and their responsibilities, choose the best intervention stage, suggest viable solutions, address strengths and barriers, and pinpoint potential stressors or traumatic memories.
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
Cyntoia’s treatment plan needs to take PTSD into consideration as a serious issue. She develops symptoms like intrusive thoughts, nightmares, hypervigilance, and emotional reactivity as a result of her traumatic experiences. Her everyday activities, interpersonal interactions, and general well-being are all negatively impacted by these symptoms. The treatment approach focuses on her PTSD in an effort to lessen her suffering, control her symptoms, and enhance her quality of life. Because of Cyntoia’s tragic past, PTSD is a major issue (Shipherd et al., 2019). To aid her in processing the traumatic experiences, lessen the severity of her symptoms, and encourage emotional healing and stability, this issue needs to be resolved.
Complex Trauma
Cyntoia has experienced horrific events repeatedly throughout her life, such as being abused as a child, becoming a victim of sex trafficking, and being found guilty of murder. Instability in interpersonal relationships, problems with trust, negative self-perception, and emotional dysregulation are all effects of this prolonged trauma exposure. For her long-term healing and recovery, it is essential to treat her complicated trauma. Complex trauma has affected Cyntoia’s general psychological health and functionality. The treatment plan hopes to assist her in comprehending the effects of her traumatic experiences, fostering healthy coping skills, and re-establishing a sense of safety and trust.
Drug Abuse and Addiction
Cyntoia has a history of drug abuse, turning to alcohol and other drugs to help her deal with her trauma and emotional pain. Her growth is severely hampered by her substance misuse. To prevent relapse, encourage sobriety, and offer healthier coping mechanisms, her addiction concerns must be addressed. Substance usage not only makes her psychological anguish worse, but it also makes it difficult for her to function effectively in therapy. The treatment plan tries to address the underlying cause of her substance usage, provide her with relapse prevention techniques, and assist her on her path to recovery.
Social Reintegration and Skill Development
Cyntoia has a difficult time rebuilding her life after spending a large amount of her life behind bars. She requires assistance in order to acquire crucial life skills, forms dependable connections, and build a rewarding future. For Cyntoia to successfully reintegrate into society, social reintegration is essential. By addressing this issue, the treatment plan seeks to provide her with the skills she needs to meet life’s obstacles, improve her self-sufficiency, and equip her with the tools she needs to have a happy and fulfilling life after her traumatic experiences and incarceration.
The goal of the treatment plan is to offer Cyntoia a thorough strategy for healing and rehabilitation by putting a priority on these four issues. The plan intends to promote her general well-being and assist her in creating a resilient and fruitful future by addressing her PTSD, complex trauma, substance misuse, and social reintegration requirements.
Potential Players on the Treatment Team and Their Roles
| Participant | Role |
| Psychiatrist | Involved in assessing Cyntoia’s mental health, writing and overseeing pharmaceutical prescriptions, and working with the therapist to treat any psychiatric symptoms. |
| Therapists or counsellors | They are in charge of delivering individual therapy, gauging improvement, and formulating treatment objectives. They will put a special emphasis on dealing with difficulties related to trauma and promoting emotional recovery. |
| Case Manager | Assists in connecting resources, making recommendations, and ensuring that Cyntoia’s fundamental needs, including housing, employment, and access to social services, are satisfied. |
| Substance misuse Counselor | Specializing in addiction treatment helps Cyntoia overcome substance misuse issues, create relapse prevention plans, and nurture healthy coping processes. |
| A Family Member | A helpful family member or friend is essential for Cyntoia’s reintegration process since they provide her with emotional support, keep her motivated, and assist with her readjusting. |
Trauma Assessment Tool and Phase of Intervention
Cyntoia’s trauma-related symptoms will be evaluated using the Trauma Symptom Checklist for Children (TSCC). According to the assessment, the Stabilization Phase of the intervention would be the best time to start the treatment. Before digging further into trauma processing, this phase tries to build safety, stabilize emotional regulation, and improve coping abilities (Antony & Barlow, 2020). The degree and duration of Cyntoia’s trauma, the presence of acute distress symptoms, and her general level of preparation for therapeutic work are all factors that go into choosing the intervention phase.
Potential Solutions and Solution Planning
Evidence-based trauma-focused cognitive behavioural therapy (TF-CBT) will be used to treat the symptoms of complex trauma and PTSD. It combines trauma processing, psychoeducation, and cognitive-behavioural approaches to aid in healing, enhance coping abilities, and reframe unhelpful ideas.
Seeking Safety
A skill-based, present-focused treatment created especially for those with trauma and substance misuse problems. It will simultaneously treat Cyntoia’s addiction and trauma, giving her useful tools to improve safety, coping, and self-care.
Social Skills Training
Cyntoia will take part in social skills training to build wholesome interpersonal connections, develop communication abilities, and strengthen her capacity to interact with others. This will aid in her social reintegration and assist her in creating a network of allies.
Vocational Rehabilitation
Programs for vocational rehabilitation will be introduced to help Cyntoia achieve financial independence and stability. In order to help her find a job that she can keep, these programs will offer job training, help with resume writing, and job placement services.
Strengths and Barriers to Solutions
Strengths: a. Resilience: Despite coming from a difficult past, Cyntoia has shown that she is resolute and that she wants to improve herself. Her ability to overcome challenges and keep her motivation high during the course of treatment will be strengthened by using her resilience.
Motivation for Change
Cyntoia’s proclaimed desire for a brighter future and her dedication to dealing with her trauma and addiction difficulties will be major strength in fostering her advancement and maintaining her recovery path.
Barriers
Limited Support System: Because of her incarceration, Cyntoia has been cut off from her family and friends, and she may have trouble rebuilding it. Fostering new relationships and fortifying those she already has with reassuring people in her life will be necessary to overcome this obstacle.
External Stigma and Judgment
Cyntoia might have trouble reintegrating into society because of how those who engage in criminal activity are perceived by society. In order to overcome this obstacle, community outreach and psychoeducation must be used to foster understanding, lessen stigma, and provide her with a supportive atmosphere.
Potential Traumatic Reminders/Stressors
Public Interest and Media Coverage
Cyntoia’s situation has received considerable public interest and media coverage, which could act as a reminder of her terrible history. Intruding thoughts and memories may also be triggered by this exposure, which may cause emotional distress. Relationships with people who were involved in her exploitation prior. Contacts or interactions with people who were involved in her prior exploitation may serve as horrific reminders, which could thwart her progress and set off unfavorable feelings.
Legal Procedures and Court Involvement is other stressors. Cyntoia’s past traumatic events can resurface whenever she interacts with the legal system, such as during court appearances or parole-related matters (Antony & Barlow, 2020). Additionally, isolation and rejection may be significant stressors to her. Experiencing isolation or rejection from others, whether in society, among friends, or in one’s family, can leave one feeling abandoned and retraumatized. Based on Cyntoia’s past and the nature of her traumatic events, some potential traumatic reminders/stressors were identified.
Conclusion
The treatment program for Cyntoia Brown from “Murder to Mercy: The Cyntoia Brown Story” addresses the problems that are given priority, assigns responsibilities to significant members of the treatment team, chooses the right intervention phase, suggests potential solutions, takes into account strengths and obstacles, and identifies potential traumatic reminders/stressors. The treatment program attempts to enable Cyntoia’s healing, rehabilitation, and effective reintegration into society by using evidence-based therapies, encouraging her social reintegration, and dealing with her trauma and addiction difficulties.
References
Shipherd, J.C., Berke, D. and Livingston, N.A. (2019). Trauma recovery in the transgender and gender diverse community: extensions of the minority stress model for treatment planning. Cognitive and Behavioral Practice, 26(4), pp.629-646.
Antony, M. M., & Barlow, D. H. (Eds.). (2020). Handbook of assessment and treatment planning for psychological disorders. Guilford Publications.
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