| Summary: | Dr. Patricia J. Pitta works with a middle-aged man who is the primary caregiver for his mother. Because the client's father died when he and his three sisters were young, he has gradually taken on their parental responsibilities. He does not have a good relationship with his sisters, who have relied on him to take care of everything. Pitta helps him realize that he has become overresponsible for his mother's well-being, despite his own recent illness and family responsibilities. Pitta supports and empowers him to consider asking his sisters for what he needs and sharing his emotions with them so that they can see the effect the stress of being the primary caregiver is having on him. She suggests that he meet individually with each sister and then, together with all of them, establish a new plan for taking care of their mother. Using the two-chair technique, Pitta helps him come up with a script he can use when talking to his sisters. She helps him realize that he needs to break the existing family pattern and work toward balancing the burden of caregiving so that he can take better care of himself.
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