Child, physical, and sexual abuse accusations, suicide, death of a parent, legal custody of a child denied to parents, body pain, respiratory infection, blurred vision, lesions on body, intravenous tubes inserted into body, diagnoses of complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS), controlling and belligerent behavior, domestic verbal violence, and in-person verbal bullying and on social media are featured images and references in the documentary.
Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Violence & Scariness in your kid's entertainment guide.
Ketamine hydrochloride injections as an experimental form of pain management to treat complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS) and alcohol cocktails are images featured in the documentary.
Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Drinking, Drugs & Smoking in your kid's entertainment guide.
Courtship and wedding photos of Jack and Beata Kowalski, pregnancy difficulties, and the births of two kids are featured images and references in the film.
Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Sex, Romance & Nudity in your kid's entertainment guide.
Smartphones,onlinevideo meetings, apparel with logos and messages, desktops and laptops, and internet search engines.
Positive Messages
a lot
Unconditional love and bond between a parent and child. One person can make a possible difference in the lives of others. Teens may want to consider careers in law, medicine, and journalism.
Positive Role Models
a lot
Jack Kowalski, a former firefighter and widower, is a single-parent dad raising two kids, Maya and Kyle, while also grieving over the loss of wife Beata and coping with the medical care of his daughter. Kyle assists sister Maya with mobility management such as riding his bike and pulling Maya along while she's seated in a wheelchair. Dr. Ashraf Hanna, an expert in complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS) and pain management, accepts Maya as a patient and advises the experimental use of ketamine to alleviate chronic pain. Dr. Anthony Kirkpatrick, MD, PhD. at the University of South Florida in Tampa, is an anesthesiologist and CRPS expert who has treated more than 3,000 patients with the disease, and describes how CPRS evolves, particularly in girls between the ages of 9 and 11 years old.
Diverse Representations
some
Daphne Chen is a Chinese American reporter who grew up in Dallas and now covers stories about the welfare of kids. Dr. Beatriz Teppa Sanchez is a Latino pediatric ICU physician at Johns Hopkins All Children's Hospital in St. Petersburg, Florida who received a medical education in Venezuela. Debra M. Salisbury is a White woman and an attorney for the Kowalski family.
Parents need to know that Take Care of Maya is a documentary about the efforts of a Florida couple who try to seek the best medical care for the management of their kid's chronic pain. References and images include child, physical, and sexual abuse accusations, suicide, death of a parent, body lesions, intravenous tubes inserted into a body, diagnosis of complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS), domestic verbal violence, in-person verbal bullying and on social media, ketamine hydrochloride injections as an experimental form of pain management, and alcohol cocktails. Language includes "a--hole," "bastards" "bulls--t," "f--ked up," "s--t," and "son of a bitch." The documentary's dominant theme is the unconditional level of love offered by parents to help their children at any cost. To stay in the loop on more movies like this, you can sign up for weekly Family Movie Night emails.
The power of Medical Providers and the Judiciary needs to be curbed!
This is an accurate depiction of a mom being wrongly accused of accused of munchhausen's by proxy and the stress it places on the whole family. I experienced these accusations many years ago and it still haunts me to this day. I'm glad that both the medical teams and the judicial system have been taken to task on this issue.
What's the Story?
TAKE CARE OF MAYAis a documentary that chronicles Jack and Beata Kowalski's actions to help the couple's daughter who is reportedly diagnosed with complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS) at the age of 10. The parents, along with Maya's younger brother Kyle, provide emotional and physical support and also seek expert advice for her care. The Kowalskis, however, encounter conflict and power struggles among medical and legal professionals over the care for and treatment of Maya's disease, which can reportedly affect girls between the ages of 9 and 11 years old.
Filmmaker Henry Roosevelt's film effectively zeroes in on one family's obstacles in this heartfelt documentary drama about determining the right healthcare for a child. Jack Kowalski, a dad and retired firefighter, says in Take Care of Maya that "we, as parents, try to do the best for our children." But their lives are faced with an unexpected turn with daughter Maya's reported diagnosis of complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS). There was nothing to prepare Kowalski, he says, "for what I went through with my family."
The Kowalskis's journey also serves, in part, as a catalyst for other families in a 2019 investigative article by child welfare reporter Daphne Chen. "I knew that I had to take the story on and I knew I had to get it right," says Chen, who interviews individuals involved in the Kowalski case, shares the fact-based findings, and receives overwhelming reader reaction. Notes Chen, the family is not only fighting for themselves, but also for the reportedly thousands of others who have tried repeatedly "to bring awareness to this issue that has been shrouded in so much shame and secrecy."
The Kowalskis seek various medical experts for answers for the care of Maya. Do you agree with their decision to do so? Why or why not?
What are your thoughts about the film's depiction of complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS) and the medical and legal teams involved in the methods used for its treatment and in Maya's care?
In the documentary, Gregory Anderson, one of the Kowalski family attorneys, states that "it's perseverance that wins the day here." Do you agree or disagree, and why?
Families can also talk about suicide and the way it's addressed here. Note: If you or someone you know is struggling with their mental health or thoughts of suicide, information and resources are available at wannatalkaboutit.com.
Research shows a connection between kids' healthy self-esteem and positive portrayals in media. That's why we've added a new "Diverse Representations" section to our reviews that will be rolling out on an ongoing basis. You can help us help kids by
suggesting a diversity update.
Common Sense Media's unbiased ratings are created by expert reviewers and aren't influenced by the product's creators or by any of our funders, affiliates, or partners.
By Sabrina McFarland
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
