N480 Ozark

OZARK Developmental & Life Cycle Theory

Alisha Hammond N480

2022)

& Country, 2020)

The Byrde family lives in the Chicago area. Marty, the father, is a financial advisor. He and his business partner launder money for the second-largest Mexican drug cartel. When things go awry, Marty’s business partner is killed, and Marty and his family are forced to relocate to Missouri Ozarks. Marty kept his business with the cartel a secret from his family. When he is forced to move, Marty tells his wife Wendy, but they choose to keep the business dealings a secret from their children Charlotte and Jonah. In time the children learn of the cartel work and even begin helping their parents. The family is working on a way to get out of working for the cartel, and things are looking good until Ben, Wendy’s brother, comes to town. Ben moving in with the family creates added stress and hardship on the family. The transition is not an easy one.

(Hitc, 2020)

Ben is Wendy Byrde’s younger brother. During the third season of the show, Ben comes to stay with Wendy and her family. Ben has bipolar disorder and refuses to take his medication due to the sexual dysfunction side effects. Ben’s behavior becomes erratic, unpredictable, and unstable. He has little control over his emotions and often has violent outbursts. Despite his inability to control his anger, he does have a good heart, is very likable, and develops a strong relationship with the Byrde’s son Jonah and the Byrde’s business partner Ruth Langmore. Ben continues to decline mentally. He tries to do the right thing but cannot understand the consequences of his actions. For example, Ben confronts the cartel’s lawyer, Helen, about her work with the Mexican cartel in front of her daughter. Her daughter was ignorant of her mother’s work with the cartel. Ben’s actions infuriate Helen, and as revenge, she orders Wendy to end Ben’s life.

The Byrde Family

(Looper, 2020)

Marty Byrde Charlotte Byrde

Marty is Wendy’s husband, and father to Charlotte and Jonah. Marty, a financial advisor, launders money for a Mexican drug cartel. Image: (Looper, 2022)

Charlotte is the oldest child. She isn’t pleased with the money laundering business but works to keep the family and their secret safe. Image: (Looper, 2022)

Brother/Uncle Ben

Ben is Wendy’s younger brother. He has bipolar disorder. He becomes a liability for the family when he stops taking his medications. Image (Looper, 2020)

Wendy Byrde Jonah Byrde

Wendy is Marty’s wife, and mother to Charlotte and Jonah. She works to support Marty by finding creative ways to launder cartel money. Image: (Looper, 2022)

Jonah is the youngest child. He develops a strong bond with his Uncle Ben. Image (Men’sHealth, 2022)

Duvall Family Life Cycle

Duvall’s Family Life Cycle theory is based on eight developmental stages. According to Duvall, the Byrde family is in the fifth stage of development, the stage with adolescent children. Although the show does not clarify the exact ages of Jonah and Charlotte, one can assume they are between the ages of 13 and 17. (Kaakinen et al., 2018)

According to Duvall, during this stage, the family development tasks include:

• Allowing adolescents to establish their own identities but still be part of family.

• Thinking about the future, education, jobs, working.

• Increasing roles of adolescents in family, cooking, repairs, and power base.

Due to the family’s involvement with the drug cartel, Charlotte and Jonah’s task development has been interrupted. Rather than focusing on school and their future, they spend most of their time trying to help their parents with the cartel work, as well as trying to keep the rest of the town ignorant to the money laundering, they are doing in Missouri.

(Public Health, n.d.)

Family Function

The Byrde family members are emotionally disconnected until their move to Missouri. Wendy and Marty’s marriage is barely surviving. Wendy has been having an affair, and Marty emotionally checked out of the marriage. Once they move to Missouri, the family has two common goals, survival and keeping the family business a secret. Although these goals keep the family physically together, they do not improve their relationships with each other. The cartel work creates tremendous stress and anxiety for all the family members. For the family to function healthily, they must learn to communicate and address the anxiety and stress of each family member.

Communication Practices

The Byrde family could use some training in communication. Their preferred style of communication in the family is either violence or silence. In other words, the family does a lot of yelling at one another and very little listening. If they are not yelling at one another, then they choose silence. Silence refers to refusing to respond to the person talking to them or just ignoring them completely. Rarely do conversations that are honest and meaningful within the family occur. Someone is always keeping a secret from one or more family members. The lying and secrecy make trust and open communication challenging. The family does not create an environment where members feel comfortable addressing concerns and issues.

Family Strength & Weaknesses

Secrets usually hinder relationships. For the Byrde family, it is the glue that keeps this family together. Each member of the family values keeping the secret so they can keep the family safe and together. This family’s greatest strength is their desire to stay together as a family.

Communication is the Byrde family’s most significant weakness. Because the family members lack proper communication skills, they talk past one another and never hear what the other person is trying to say. Their constant stress and anxiety contribute to their poor communication. The inability to communicate with one another creates feelings of anger, hurt, and resentment. No cultural or religious traditions were evident.

Developmental & Life Cycle Theory

Assessment- How has each family member adjusted to Ben coming to live with the family?

Marty- Marty and Wendy tried to convince Ben not to live with them. Marty hoped he could keep his work with the cartel a secret. Ben figured it out. With Ben not taking his medication and knowing of their work with the cartel, Marty knew Ben would become a liability. Ben’s actions create stress for Marty and cause him to worry about the safety of his family and Ben. Wendy- Wendy loves her family and her brother very much. She tried to convince Ben that living with them was not an ideal situation. However, Ben had no where else to go, so she agreed to let him stay. When she discovered he was no longer taking his medications her fear of him becoming a liability for their family became reality. Ben’s actions have put everyone’s lives in danger. Wendy received orders to end Ben’s life, or the cartel will kill their whole family. Wendy must decide whether to obey the orders of the cartel or try and save her brother’s life without killing her family in the process. Only Wendy and Marty are aware of this ultimatum, they decided to keep this a secret from their children. Charlotte- Charlotte loves her family very much. She cares about her Uncle Ben and is worried how his actions will impact her family. She is most concerned about her mother. She is not sure how her mother will handle the stress Ben is creating for the family.

Jonah- Jonah has shown signs of depression and distress. Ben moving in is a positive for Jonah. Jonah develops a strong relationship with Ben. Jonah has longed for a best friend. Unfortunately, when Ben begins acting out, Jonah’s stress and anxiety are heightened over the safety of Ben and his family. The thought of losing any of his family members is overwhelming.

Interventions & Outcomes

PROBLEM INTERVENTION OUTCOME

Family’s inability to understand one another’s feelings, opinions, and ideas.

Utilize the Family Health Conversation Intervention.

Rationale: A study by Mona Ahlberg et al. found this intervention provided patients with an improved understanding of each other, increased concern for one another, and developed a closer relationship. (Ahlberg et al., 2019)

Individual inability to communicate properly, especially during times of high stress and anxiety.

Utilize the communication skills taught in the book Crucial Conversations or attend one of their in-person or virtual seminars. Rationale: Crucial Conversations help people communicate when stakes are high, opinions vary, and emotions run strong. (Patterson, 2021)

Anxiety due to high stress

Use massage therapy to reduce anxiety.

Rationale: Massage was shown to be an excellent method for reducing anxiety. (Ackley et al., 2017, p.140)

Family members will improve their understanding of each other, increase concern for one another, and develop a closer relationship.

Each person will be able to communicate in a respectful way where the other person feels safe to share their opinions and ideas.

Family members will have reduced levels of anxiety.