Citation

Hulgaard DR, Rask CU, Risør MB, Dehlholm G. J. Child Health Care 2019; ePub(ePub): 1367493519864745.

Affiliation

Department of Clinical Research, Child- and Adolescent Psychiatry Odense, University of Southern Denmark, Odense, Denmark.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2019, SAGE Publishing)

DOI

10.1177/1367493519864745

PMID

31337230

Abstract

Functional disorders in children and adolescents are common. Still, little is known about parents' experience of having a child with a functional disorder. The aim of this qualitative interview study was to explore challenges encountered by parents caring for a child undergoing treatment for functional disorder. Sixteen parents to children with functional disorders were interviewed when their child was referred from a paediatric department for further specialized treatment with family therapy in child and adolescent mental health services. Analysis identified three themes, reflecting the parental experiences: parents in limbo, which described how limited knowledge about functional disorders among professionals in non-specialized settings influenced parental roles; a counterintuitive kind of caring, describing parental struggles with adhering to treatment recommendations for functional disorders; and challenges to parental identity, describing parental emotional challenges. These challenges may bar the acceptance of psychological treatment approaches in families with a child with functional disorders.

Language: en

Keywords

Child and adolescent mental health; family; paediatric; parenting; qualitative approaches