Limited attention has been paid to experiences of individuals with siblings diagnosed with schizophrenia. The purpose of this article is to address this gap by exploring the impact of having a brother or sister with schizophrenia. The lived experience of 6 individuals with a sibling with schizophrenia was explored using van Manen's (1997) Hermeneutic Phenomenology. Four themes were identified: struggling to understand, struggling with the system, caring for the sibling, and seeing beyond the illness. Health care providers need to re-evaluate current approaches for assisting individuals to cope with having a sibling with schizophrenia. Inclusion in the plan of care and recognition of their struggle is essential for individuals having a sibling with schizophrenia.

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Narrative methods are ideally suited for addressing needs of children experiencing mental health problems and can enhance therapeutic effectiveness. Some of the challenges associated with its use include: finding creative ways to apply specific narrative concepts and methods with diverse clinical issues/problems; learning to collaborate with children and respect them as experts in their own lives; and shifting the nursing focus from a problem-focused orientation to a strength-oriented and child-centered approach.

The impact of witnessing marital violence on children and adolescents has only recently come to the attention of family violence researchers. The research emphasis has been on the behavioural effects of exposure to marital violence, with boys from these homes surfacing as the most visible victims. Girls, who some researchers believe show a less visible response, have been a largely neglected group. This phenomenological study explored experiential aspects of exposure to marital violence, focusing on the perspective of five adolescent girls. Data analysis followed the phenomenological method. Seven essential themes that expressed the meaning of this experience for participants were identified. The themes are described and implications for nursing practice and further research are discussed.

Nursing therapeutics with adolescents experiencing depression must embrace a holistic integrated approach to adolescent recovery with an emphasis on what works with each unique clinical situation. Special attention to the nurse-adolescent therapeutic alliance not only facilitates achievement of therapeutic goals related to the depressive illness, but in addition, supports the shaping of a new self-narrative, wholeness, and healthy adolescent development and well-being.