Ray Cao

Psychology 1100
Professor Pamela Lemons

Section 1 person paper

I.

Introduction
This paper is going to be about my girlfriend and her family. I believe her story is
much more interesting than anybody else that I know. My girlfriends name is Alora Rose
North but she goes by Rosie. Her mothers name is Rebecca Baum and her father is Tony
North. Rebecca and Tony went through a divorce when Rosie was about 3 years old and
was moved around a lot and so was her other siblings Angie, Travis, Duke, Amanda and
Sara. In total Rebecca and Tony have 6 children together but Tony had 2 more children
with his current wife, Brita. Rebecca is 57 and single and works as a Registered nurse at
the University of Utah. Tony is 59 and is married with his current wife Brita, he works at
a group home that help boys who cannot live with their familys reasons such as abuse,
neglect, or considered ungovernable.

II.

Social Economic Status

They are both in pretty good health and their socioeconomic status or social class
which is based off their income, occupation, education, and neighborhood. (Berger, p. 11)
Was low when they were together. Rebecca was actually working as a Certified Nurse
Assistant and Tony was working as a butcher at the time when they had Rosie. They lived

in Nephi, Utah which is a little town known for people to raise their children in. They
lived in low-income housing with 6 children which Angie, Travis, and Duke described as
tight. Even though Angie, Travis, and Duke were about 18-20 they were still living
with their parents until Angie went to college at Snow College. Travis went on a mission
and then lived with his parents until he went to BYU. Duke joined the military when he
was 16 and served until he was injured during battle. He now lives with his wife and 3
kids in Houston, Texas.
III.

Pregnancy
Rebecca during her pregnancy with Rosie was healthy but the interesting thing
was Rosie was a miracle baby as her mother described her. Rebecca had a procedure
done called tubal ligation or simply she had her tubes tied. (Web M.D.) Rebecca and
Tony were extra surprised when they found out they were pregnant with their 6th child.
Even though Rebecca was healthy during the pregnancy it was a risk because Rebecca
was 39 at the time, usually at that age complications occur. Lucky enough Rosie was born
with no complications and was a healthy baby. Rosie at that time she was a fetus was not
exposed to any teratogens which is anything that increases the risk of prenatal
abnormalities. (Berger, p. 73) Rosie would then live in Ferron and would move around a
lot more as she grew older.

IV.

Newborn & Infancy

Newborns typically lose a few ounces in the first three days then start to gain
weight every day for several months. (Berger, p.92) Rosie was seven pounds and eleven
ounces and 19 inches when she was born. As Rosie grew older so did her body and brain.
The brain contains about 100 billion neurons but also has fewer dendrites and synapses.

(Berger, p. 94) Axon and dendrites are fibers that send electrochemical impulses to
neuron to neuron and synapses which are the intersections between these axons and
dendrites. (Berger, p. 94) Dendrites are the main reason why the weight of brain triples by
the age of two. (Berger, p. 95) As Rosies brain developed she starts to develop her senses
and her motor skills (any movement ability) such as walking and of course her emotions.
V.

(Berger, p. 103)
Toddler
Rosie starts to develop her emotions and certain events such as her parents
divorce affected her development of emotion which would be carried out throughout her
life. Typically, early newborn emotions are from pleasure and pain, they cry if they are in
pain or hungry once taken care of or satisfied they fall asleep. (Berger, p.132) More
emotions start to develop such as happiness between two to four months. Anger at 4-8
months and fear about 9-14 months. (Berger, p. 132) Rosies parents were divorced at the
time Rosie was about a toddler. She remembers a lot of fighting and was moving around
a lot. She felt like she had to pick sides sometimes which is something a toddler shouldnt
have to do. Even though her parents got a divorce when she was a toddler a lot of strain

VI.

and drama was going through out her childhood and even a little bit to this day.
Early Childhood & Middle Childhood
During most of Rosies childhood she had to deal with moving from place to
place. She was living in Ferron when she was a baby but moved to Richfield for a little
when she was a toddler and as she got into her early childhood she was moving back and
forth from Nephi and Santaquin. She also lived in Provo but would then move back to
Nephi later on. As described in our book during middle childhood its important to
provide physical necessities, learning, self-respect, peer relationships, harmony and
stability. (Berger, p. 292) If not provided with these could disrupt the family function

which is pretty much how a family cares for its members. (Berger, p. 292) Since Rosie
was not provided with the same routine, stability and harmony was compromised. I can
tell from this she has developed some issues leading on into adolescence.
VII.

Adolescence
Rosie had a very unstable childhood moving from place to place, trying to figure
out why her parents were fighting so much, why she had to see a therapist when she was
just a child. Another thing she had to deal with was transitioning from school to school
which is something very stressful. Rosie transferred schools when she was in elementary
and then moved to Alpine where she would attend Jr. High. Then puberty started to kick
in, puberty is the process of rapid physical growth and sexual maturation that end
childhood. (Berger, p. 319) Rosie is now an adolescent and this time is always a weird
time for teenagers and being the new kid at school and to the area does not make it any
better. Rosie was able to make friends but feared if she did she would just have to leave
them again. Unfortunately, this would be the case. Rosie then moved to Salt Lake City
where she would attend high school. Rosie was very upset to find out that she would be
leaving her friends and not being able to attend high school with them. Since Rosie was
not provided with the same routine when she was younger she would then later on
develop anxiety which she takes medication for. She also does not handle change well
and during adolescence she barely saw her father which led to attachment issues.
Attachment issues can be caused by being repeatedly abandoned or uncared for which
could then lead to not trusting anybody or the world. (Helpguide,staff) She now does not

VIII.

rely on her father anymore because she was repeatedly let down.
Emerging Adulthood
As Rosie reaches emerging adulthood her father starts to try and fix their
relationship, slowly trying to gain back her trust. She now is a little happier knowing that

he wants to be in her life a little more. Rosie is in college now and is at the age for hard
physical work and successful reproduction. (Berger, p. 393) Of course, she is not
expecting to have any children any time soon. She wants to get her education so she is
IX.

able to get a good job and then settle down and have children.
Conclusion
Rosie has gone through some hard times dealing with her parents divorce, feeling
abandon by her father, and something I did not mention was her dealing with her
stepmother and stepfather. Due to certain reasons, she did not want me to write about this
so I am respecting her wishes. Even though she has been through a lot Rosie still had
some family she could look up too such as her mother, grandmother, and some siblings.
In this paper, I feel like I have made Rosie out to be some emotional, distant, depressed
person but she is really something special. I couldnt imagine going through what she
went through and still being able to smile. I have a lot respect for her and I am glad to be
a part of her life.

References

Helpguide, Staff. Attachment Issues and Reactive Attachment Disorder. (n.d.). Retrieved November
10, 2016, from http://www.helpguide.org/articles/secure-attachment/attachment-issues-and-reactiveattachment-disorders.htm

Berger, Kathleen. Invitation to the life span. 2014.

WebMD. (n.d.). Tubal Ligation/Implants/Tubes Tied: Effects, Chances of Pregnancy After. Retrieved
November 10, 2016, from http://www.webmd.com/sex/birth-control/tubal-ligation-and-tubal-implants