Case Conceptualization and Treatment Plan: Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close

Case Conceptualization #2
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Oscar from Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close
The novel Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close by Jonathan Safran Foer narrates the story of a nine-year-old boy who loses his father, Thomas Schell, in the 9/11 terrorist attacks in 2001 (Glazebrook, 2005). Oscar Schell is incredibly close to his father, and the loss devastates him. The novel is told from Oscar's point of view, and his innocence and childlike perspective of the world make the story more poignant. To deal with his grief, he travels on a journey to find a lock that could fit his father's hidden key. His coping mechanism takes him all over New York City and gets him into contact with various people who have their own stories regarding 9/11. In his journey, he gradually realizes that the lock is not the only thing he is looking for but also a way to cope with his loss and accept the happenings and lack of closure of what occurred on that fateful day. The book explores the themes of loss, grief, and love and how Oscar came to terms with his father's death.
Behaviors, Thoughts, Emotions, Relationship Changes, and Spiritual Alterations the Character is Experiencing.
Oscar's thoughts shift from chapter to chapter, but deep down, he tries to come to terms with his dad's demise. In this regard, he feels safe dealing with death as an imaginary concept rather than facing the reality behind it. His non-stop activity when he talks about rapid-fire speed and cracks jokes on the limousine ride to the cemetery for the funeral is a way of showing grief. He later describes the letters he began to write after his father's death to connect to people. In the second chapter, the book describes a letter by Oscar's grandfather, who grieves differently from the lack of communication. He has the words "Yes" and "NO" tattooed on his palms and carries a day book.
Losses Incurred by Oscar
Oscar is experiencing the loss of his father, hope of closure, part of his identity, and love and affection from his dad. Additionally, he has lost support, someone to joke and perform activities with, potential loss of financial security, the illusion of safety, and loss of control over how to grieve and adjust to the losses.
How Oscar Is Responding to the Loss
In the third chapter, Oscar describes the bracelet he made for his mother using the different colored beads that depicted his father's last voice message in Morse code. Since his father's death, he had trouble with several things that triggered him, like crossing suspension bridges, showers, and being around Arab people. Oscar also frequently bruises himself due to guilt as a way of punishing himself physically. For instance, when he falls asleep on the floor, and his mom pulls off his shirt to get him into pajamas, he is afraid that her mom will notice the forty-one self-inflicted bruises on his chest. One of his rules is only to wear white clothes. Oscar's relationship with his mother changed, for he started hiding things from her to protect her, such as the calls that dad made before his death.
Oscar has insomnia, and he calls his grandmother using a walkie-talkie because both are afraid of being abandoned again. When rummaging through hi...