Developmental History Interview

Amanda Buttrum

Stevenson University
 They say the present can be a glimpse into the past. When speaking in our

developmental terms, we are much like trees. We start small, a twig, with a couple little

branches. The branches represent what we know and our adaptation to what we know. As

we grow older, our trunk becomes thicker; our branches become longer sprouting out

new branches. As we experience we develop more thoughts, more branches, some are

shifted or changed in storms, but our roots remain planted. I think of humans in this way,

a visual representation of a tree. The shape demonstrates its natural reach for the sun, its

opportunity to grow. As we begin life we are altered by our experiences. We spend our

life seeking opportunity much like the tree seeks the sun. My father, my favorite tree,

celebrated his 72nd birthday on February 21st. William Francis Buttrum simply put, is a

good man. What makes a good man? I could write that he is a wonderful father and

husband, a hard worker, giver of great advice, and a generous man to boot but how did he

become this man? This is a glimpse into the developmental history of my old man, the

best guy I know, my dad.

William, known as Bill to family and friends, was the second born child to a

teenage mother in 1946. Bill was told by his grandmother while growing up that he was

the easiest baby she’d ever met. According to Sigelman and Rider (2017), Bill had an

“Easy Temperament” which they describe as “Easy infants are even-tempered, typically

content or happy, and open and adaptable to new experiences…”(p. 338). This was not

surprising to hear as Bill is best known for his “easy going” personality. Bill has one full

blood brother, Johnny, is who is 3 years older. He recalls being told that he was a much

easier baby than his brother, who cried often and never slept. Bill’s father left before he
was born and remained an absentee father as his mother refused to allow him time with

his sons due to his alcoholism.

Bill grew up in a multi-generational home at first, living in his grandparent’s

house with his grandmother, grandfather, mother and older brother until he was around

the age of 2. At this time, his mother would marry, move in with her husband, and leave

Bill and his brother to stay with their grandparents. Bill’s grandparents would go on to

raise he and his brother to adulthood while his mother would have 7 children from her

marriage. His mother raised all 7 children from marriage to adulthood while spending

very little time with Bill and his brother. When asked how he felt about his mother, he

explained that his mother was a good woman and she loved him. He admits to being

resentful at times towards his half brothers and sisters, but tried to make the best of his

relationship with them and his biological mother. Bill eventually separated himself from

his biological mother in his adult years as his resentment for her grew. Bill experienced

Insecure attachment as a child, Peg Streep (2013), writer for Psychology today describes

the differences between secure and insecure attachment, “If secure attachment is like a

bedrock on which a stable sense of self can be built, insecure attachment is its opposite,

shifting as the child grows in understand.” While he maintained an easy temperament

throughout his life, he never would get over feeling abandoned while his half siblings

received all of his mother’s attention.

Despite the eventual separation of Bill from his mother, he remembers having a

happy childhood. His grandmother was a devout catholic woman who made him attend

church every Sunday. He felt loved at home; he remembers always being kissed and

hugged. Bill also talked about how his grandmother always made home cooked meals
when his grandfather would come home from work. He explains that his grandfather was

a good man who worked hard and always made time to play with him. Growing up, Bill

always had a bed to sleep in with clean clothes to wear. He always felt safe where he

lived as a child, in the projects of Baltimore City in the 1950’s. Although his family was

not wealthy, he was always entertained as he played with kids in his neighborhood. When

asked to explain his personality growing up, he replied that he was out going, and easily

made friends. Being a poor child in Baltimore City, majority of his entertainment came

from playing with friends in the neighborhood. He remembers running from house to

house knocking on doors to rally his friends to play baseball. Bill made great efforts as a

child to make his grandparents proud by performing well in school and staying out of

trouble. When discussing his teen years, Bill admitted to being more of a follower on

occasion to impress friends. He described a moment of shame when he was arrested at

the age of 16 for beating up a younger boy simply because his friends pressured him into

it. He recalls feeling ashamed and disgusted with himself for hurting the boy and his

grandparents, who he felt he owed the world to. According to Erikson’s theory of Stage 5

development, Identity vs. Role Confusion, a period between puberty and adulthood when

children begin to determine their identities. If they are successful in their choices, a child

will develop autonomy, if unsuccessful, they may feel unclear about their identity

(Sigelman & Rider, 2017, p. 39). In this situation, Bill was exhibiting confusion in his

identity. As a result of his feelings from the event, he would choose to act differently next

time.

Education was encouraged in his household growing up but higher education was

not as valued. While Bill continued his education until 10th grade, his older brother came
of age, joined the Air Force and left home, never to return. The year Bill turned 16; his

grandfather suffered a heart attack, he did not survive. Bill, with his grandfather’s work

ethic, following in his footsteps, dropped out of school to work and support his

grandmother. During this time, he had little time for himself, relationships, friendships

and fun. He experienced caregiver burden, explained by Sigelman and Rider (2017) as “-

psychological distress associated with the demands of providing care for someone with

physical or cognitive impairments,” (p. 489). With the loss of his grandfather, brother,

and the ailing health of his grandmother, he describes his teen years as a sad time. His

grandmother was his number one priority until he was drafted into the army during the

Vietnam War. Bill, unwilling to be branded a “Draft Dodger” accepted his fate and went

into the Army. Bill went through basic training, and was flown to Colorado where he was

to fly out to Vietnam. He recalls feeling guilty for having to leave his grandmother. He

received call just days before being shipped out to Vietnam that his grandmother had

fallen deathly ill. Bill was given the choice to receive a dishonorable discharge to return

home to care for his grandmother, as he was the only person she had left, or to continue

on to Vietnam with his platoon. Bill accepted a dishonorable discharge, and returned

home to care for his dying grandmother. He would later find out that all the men in his

platoon were wiped out in the war. Bill carried the shame of a dishonorable discharge

despite his reason for returning home but would never regret his decision to care for his

grandmother. She passed away a few short months after his return. Later he learned that

he developed anxiety likely caused by the death of his grandmother.

At age 21, Bill married his 18-year-old wife, Burma whom he met as a child

growing up in the neighborhood. His first two years of marriage to Burma would be
difficult, as he would have a difficult time holding down a job. In their first year of

marriage, he had 15 different jobs. His wife, understandingly stressed over the situation,

would leave him several times.

According to Cognitive Behavioral Therapist Dr. Allison Kahner:

Young couples are at the highest risk of divorce. The statistic starts to drop when

people are in their late 20’s through 30’s. It is possible that those who marry too

young are still maturing and are not as equipped to deal with the stresses and

strains of marriage and family. Not being established professionally is one of

those stresses (Cognitive Therapy Associates, 2017).

At age 23, his first son was born. Bill explains that his motivation became clear

when his son, William Jr. was brought into the world. For the sake of his marriage and

son, he followed in the footsteps of his grandfather and found a career in a company that

he would stay with for the next 31 years. At age 26, his second son, Troy, was born. After

child number two.

A devastating blow rocked Bill’s life at age 27 when his oldest son William, age

4, was diagnosed with Leukemia. He spent the next several years running between

hospital visits, appointments, work, and attempting to keep his son Troy’s life normal.

Bill and his wife were told early on that their son would not survive. William Jr. spent

majority of his life from age 4-10 in hospitals for treatment. The financial burden of

medical expenses caused Bill to file for bankruptcy. At age 10, William Jr. was given an

experimental drug as a last ditch effort to save his life. Bill and his father in law, who had

developed a close bond with, drove to a helicopter pad in the middle of the night to

receive an emergency treatment for William Jr. before he became worse. When
discussing that night, he stops, looks down to the floor and shakes his head, then looks up

to the sky and points. He explained that in his darkest moment, he became a true believer

in god. Bill also described this event as something that changed him because the real fear

of being told his son would die made the other worries in life seem insignificant.

Sigelman and Rider (2017) describe this kind of development as Posttraumatic Growth:

Posttraumatic stress and posttraumatic growth seem to go hand in hand. Growth is

unlikely where there is little psychological distress and it is unlikely where the

distress is overwhelming. Instead, growth seems most likely when distress is

significant but not crushing” (p. 557)

It was after his son William Jr received the experimental treatment that he went

go into remission, being 1 of 2 children in the world who survived the relapse he had.

Life became normal again; William Jr was officially in remission by age 12 and goes on

today happy and healthy. Life would throw another surprise, but a much happier one Bill

says, at age 37 his wife would become pregnant unknowingly and with a very short

notice of 3 months, give birth to a daughter.

Life moved along and Bill continued to work at his company as a machine

mechanist working swing shift as well as overtime to make ends meet. His wife was a

stay at home mother so the financial burden was on him. He followed his grandfather’s

work ethic and never missed a day of work until his health began to decline. Bill

describes himself as a healthy kid growing up, never had many colds or any serious

illnesses. In his 30’s, he was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes, a disease that develops in

early adulthood. Bill was surprised when diagnosed as nobody in his family had diabetes

that he had known of. However, he never knew his father or anyone on his father’s side
of the family. The U.S. National Library of Medicine states the following: “A

predisposition to develop type 1 diabetes is passed through generations in families, but

the inheritance pattern is unknown.” Since his diagnosis he receives two shots of insulin a

day but rarely kept track of his sugar levels over the years. Bill became significantly

overweight in his early 40’s. Diabetes would begin to present a true change in life style.

Professor of Psychology, Tara L. Kuther (2018) explains in her book Lifespan

Development in Context: A Topical Approach “Diabetes has serious cognitive effects

including declines in executive function, processing speed, memory, and motor function

(as cited in Peters, Huxley, & Woodward. 2014).” She also goes on to write that Diabetes

is a disease that affects psychosocial functioning and that depression is two to three times

more common among people who have diabetes (T. Kuther, 2018, p. 183).

Around the age of 52, he received surgery on his left eye due to glaucoma. Due to

complications, he would never see out of that eye again. Upon this event, his world was

forever changed. A man who had worked around the clock, putting in long hours,

socializing with co-workers and supporting his family would retire on disability. Bill

suffered post-operative depression, which is considered a complication with surgery. Bill

explains that he felt helpless and sorry for himself, he took medication for anxiety but

hated the way it made him feel empty. His marriage began to suffer as he and his wife

argued more frequently. It wasn’t until he took up a hobby called “plaster crafting” and

turned it into a family business that he felt happy and useful again. To this day, at age 72,

he still works in his backroom studio creating little plaster animals and figurines to take

to craft shows for kids to paint. It has become his life’s purpose. Due to the fact that he

was forced to retire early due to the loss of his eye, he never entered the honeymoon
phase of retirement described by Sigelman and Rider as a time when one relishes in their

newfound freedom and indulges in their preferred activities to pass time. Bill went

directly into the disenchantment phase which is alternative described as the time after

retirement where one feels useless or without purpose. (Sigelman & Rider, 2017, p. 360).

Health problems continued to plague Bill as the years went on. At age 62, Bill

twisted his foot and fell while trying to cut grass. He continued to walk, despite the pain

for weeks. Being a stubborn man, he avoids doctors at all cost. After finally seeing a foot

specialist, he found out that his foot had detached from his ankle. Due to nerve damage in

his feet from being diabetic, he felt pain but not enough pain to know how seriously

injured he had been. Several doctors told him he would have to have his foot amputated

because it would never heal from a major surgery. Dr. Schon, at Union Memorial

Hospital, gave Bill and his family hope. Bill underwent several major surgeries, hospital

stays and scares throughout this time in his life. Due to the nature of the surgery, he was

unable to put weight on his foot for almost a year and a half. He lay in a bed with his foot

up, only able to put it down long enough to use the potty chair next to his bed, or to

receive a sponge bath. His mental health was severely compromised during this time. The

stress, anxiety and pain would become too much. He also would find himself having a

difficult time keeping track of things, understanding, and involving himself in

conversation. Bill experienced a syndrome known as “POCD,” postoperative cognitive

impairment.

Mohamed M. Ghoneim, Anesthesiologist and Professor of Psychology Michael

O’Hara describe this condition as:

 A relatively serious complication of anesthesia and major surgery for

elderly patients over 60 years of age. An early cognitive decline in the first

week post-surgery of about 30-50% of patients is followed by a persistent

decline in 10-20% at 3 months post operatively. It leads to problems with

learning, memory, attention and concentrations which may affect

performance of daily activities (National Library of Medicine, 2016).

He mentioned that his thoughts became so dark that sometimes he thought he

would be better off dead, but then he’d think of his children and wife. Bill explained his

family was the only reason he survived and god was the reason he healed. 2 years after

his major surgery, and loss of two toes to infection, with the support of a cane, he began

to walk on his own two feet again and live a normal life.

Diabetes has been the major affliction of Bill’s life but he tries to focus his time

on keeping track of sugar levels and eating appropriate meals. When asked how his

health has changed his life he laughs and says “I’m not playing baseball these days that’s

for sure.” He is grateful that his foot was saved but is physically limited in his ability to

be active. Bill explains that he still finds himself depressed from time to time because his

mind feels younger than his body but then he feels selfish because he’s still healthy

enough to walk the earth, no matter how slow and clumsy.

As mentioned before, Bill is about to celebrate 51 years of marriage. He says that

his priorities have changed over the years. He plans to be married to his wife forever and

they have been successful in overcoming many obstacles such as a severely sick child,

money problems, and health issues. Despite all the struggles he says he would never

change a thing about his life. When asked about his most proud accomplishment, he said,
“My kids.” While Bill admits to slowing down due to physical limitations, he is satisfied

with his life thus far though he is regretful that he has no biological grandchildren. His

goals these days are to keep making plaster crafts, take care of his health, and spend time

with his wife, kids, extended family, and “grand dogs”. Bill also says, “To live as long as

the good lord will allow me.” Bill is currently in Erikson’s stage of integrity versus

despair, he is accepting the life that he has had and finding the meaning of it all.

Sigelman and Rider (2017) write: “Those older adults who achieve integrity tend to be

well-adjusted people who think in mature and complex ways and have a sense of great

well-being.” (p. 357). Bill has struggled in life, but he has accepted his lot and is grateful

everyday for his time.

In conclusion, a life well lived does not come without it’s adversities. When

looking at the whole story, my father is a person who could have easily chose a different

path succumbed to depression, anxiety, abandonment issues and more. This is a lot even

for an easy going person like him to overcome but he chose to live life for what it is, the

experience, good and bad.

 References

Sigelman, C., Rider, E. (2017). Life-Span Human Development (9th ed.). Boston, MA:

Cengage Learning

Streep, P. (2013, May 7). For Sons of Unloving Mothers, Confusion and Lasting Words.

Retrieved March 9, 2018, from https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/tech-

support/201305/sons-unloving-mothers-confusion-and-lasting-wounds

Kahner, A. (2017). Cognitive Behavioral Therapy: Marriage Counseling and Couples

Therapy. Cognitive Therapy Associates. Retrieved March 12th, 2018, from

https://www.cognitive-therapy-associates.com/marriage-counseling-couples-therapy

Ghoneim, M., O’Hara, M. (2016, February). Depression and postoperative

complications: an overview. Retrieved March 11th, 2018 from

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4736276/

Kuther, T.L. (2018). Lifespan Development in Context. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage

Publications.