Giving Care to Men and Women with Mental Illness

Abstract

Caregivers are a largely understudied, unsung population who shoulder many of the social and psychological costs of mental illness. This study examines the load of caregiving during symptomatic and stabilised phases of the mentally ill and the various ways in which family members adapt themselves to give care. Drawing its data from 200 families with mental illness in Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka, the study diffuses the notion of care as physical, medical, psychological and social. The article focuses on how the gender of the affected person affects caregiving and underlines the indispensability of the family. Used to giving credit for any improvement to doctors and medicines, the study records the Indian Journal of Gender Studies 18(3) 405-424

Spousal Caregiver Burden and Its Relation with Disability in Schizophrenia

“…There is a paucity of studies on the specific issue of spousal caregiving burden in schizophrenia. [ 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 ] Among the studies which have focused on spousal caregiver burden[ 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 ] and within the constraints of limited sample size, gender,[ 32 38 39 ] age of spouse,[ 32 36 38 ] duration of marriage,[ 36 38 ] number of children,[ 38 ] place of residence,[ 35 36 ] and family type[ 32 36 ] were found not to be associated with the degree of burden. While the spouses’ monthly income did not predict spousal caregiver burden,[ …”

Bad, burdened or ill? Characterizing the spouses of women with schizophrenia

“…A study of 120 spouses of chronic schizophrenic patients in India showed that wives, especially those in small nuclear families, experienced more burden than husbands (Kumar & Mohanty, 2007; Kumar, Rani, Jain & Mohanty, 2009). Male schizophrenia patients required more physical care than female patients (Janardhana, Shravya, Naidu, Saraswathy & Seshan, 2011). Men did not pay attention to hygiene and needed to be reminded and persuaded to take their medicines.…”

“…Assaults against family members occurred only among the men. The stress on spouses was greatest when they tried to enact roles that did not fit into accepted gender stereotypes, such as when a husband had to look after his wife’s physical hygiene or a wife had to control a violent husband (Janardhana et al, 2011).…”

“…Mental health services need to be aware of such possibilities, need to monitor what is happening in the home, and be prepared to intervene effectively for the sake of the marital couple and of any children. While women whose husbands suffer from schizophrenia appear to shoulder a greater burden than husbands whose wives bear the diagnosis, caregiving is usually a more difficult task for the man, and, in some cultures, may be disparaged (Janardhana et al, 2011). Mental health services need to be sensitive not only to family burden, but also to its cultural implications.…”

Discrimination against differently abled children among rural communities in India: Need for action

“… Need to remove attitudinal barriers among communities and provide rehabilitation of CWDs. [ 22 23 ] Need to improve infrastructures in mainstream schools to make them disabled friendly and train teachers for optimal support. Need to converge between various departments providing services for CWDs.…”