Caregiver or care receiver: Adolescents' experience of caregiving to a parent with severe mental illness: A qualitative study

Abstract

Exploring the experiences of adolescent caregivers of mentally ill parents is essential to understand their challenges and identify their care needs. Using a qualitative research design, 18 caregiving adolescents shared their experiences of living with and providing care to a parent with a severe mental illness. The analysis of the interviews resulted in the emergence of three main categories: (1) emotional exhaustion with associated subthemes of ‘ongoing worries’, ‘fear of loneliness’, ‘feeling of shame and guilt’ and ‘fear of discrimination and stigma’; (2) being trapped in a difficult situation with subthemes of ‘living a compromised life’, ‘alienating from peers’ and ‘caregiver rather than care receiver; and (3) adapting to the situation with subthemes of developing new skills and growing accountability. The study findings suggest that adolescent caregivers of parents with severe mental illness experience significant challenges and psychological distress associated with their caregiving role. They need to be supported by health care providers to develop strategies to adjust to their situation and maintain health and well‐being.

Sibling Relationships of Individuals with Parents Who Have Mental Illness: A Qualitative Study

“…Additionally, social and emotional connections may lessen the impact of mental illness in parents. 4,14,15 In fact, in this study, participants stated they thanked God their other parent was healthy, the emotional support received from siblings was very important and they coped with negative emotions with support from siblings. In research, children were reported to develop a variety of coping strategies to cope with negative feelings and understand mental illness in parents.…”

“…16 However, it has been reported that the lack of support resources can harm the normal development of children/young caregivers. 15 Nurses working in community mental health should support sibling relationships when assessing families with mental illness from an integrated perspective and contribute to strengthening solidarity between siblings with this support. In this context, programs strengthening emotional support and solidarity may be included.…”

“…In the literature, it has been reported that the experiences of chil-dren/young people coping with the difficult living conditions due to having a parent with mental illness contributed to personal development, and also that the children of parents with mental illness had strong aspects like feeling independence, empathy and resilience. 15,19,20 In another study, it was stated that children describe themselves as more mature, independent, empathetic and have gained various abilities compared to their peers (children without parents with mental illness), and they also found social support, information about mental illnesses and the support of mental health nurses to be beneficial. 21 The study findings are similar to the literature.…”