Departure scripts and life review of parents living with abusive adult children with mental disorder

"I Do Not Think She Will Understand, This is Not a Situation for a Girl Like Her:" Disenfranchised Grief Among Adults with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities in the Ultra-orthodox Jewish Society

This article examines the experience of aging ultra-Orthodox families alongside a person with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) in relation to parents' illness and death, followed by grief. In-depth interviews were conducted with 14 family units. Each family unit included the person with IDD, a parent, and a sibling-a total of 43 participants. Three main themes emerged: A. The difficulty in confronting illness and dying of parents alongside a family member with IDD in an Ultra-Orthodox Context. B. Exclusion of the person with IDD from parents' memorial events. C. Religious ceremonies as a strategy for coping with mourning among persons with IDD. The discussion focuses on the concept of disenfranchised grief in a religious context and its impact on the family support system. Culturally sensitive therapeutic recommendations are made for professionals working with older ultra-Orthodox Jewish families alongside a person with IDD in the context of the subject.

Mothering in later life: Older mothers and their challenging adult children

This study uses constructivist grounded theory to explore older women's responses to the unexpected need to provide financial, emotional and residential support to their adult children who were experiencing problems with mental illness, substance abuse and/or absence of employment. Twenty-nine American women (>60) were interviewed:55 per cent were poor and half were women of colour. Using the theoretical model of intergenerational ambivalence, three types of structural ambivalence are discovered: mothers’ reactions to their adult children's behaviour that violate expectations for reciprocity; women's dismayed reactions to their adult children's aggressive behaviours towards themselves as their mothers; and the women's struggle regarding balancing their role as a mother to protect their adult children alongside their wish and identified needs for self-care. All of the conflicts were expressed within the frame of their role of mother. The internalised mandate to be ‘a good mother’ resulted in many experiencing shame, self-blame and guilt, and this self-blame was an obstacle to reaching out for help. This study adds to the growing body of feminist gerontological research and examines the ideological and structural variables that influence the predominance of female unpaid family care-givers in later life. The dilemma for older women with troubled adult children is both personal and political.

Violence by Persons with Serious Mental Illness Toward Family Caregivers and Other Relatives: A Review

Persons living with serious mental illness (SMI) are at a modestly increased risk of committing violence and are disproportionately likely to target family members when they do commit violence. In this article, we review available evidence regarding violence by persons with SMI toward family members, many of whom are caregivers. Evidence suggests that a sizable minority of family members with high levels of contact with persons with SMI have experienced violence, with most studies finding rates of past year victimization to be 20% or higher. Notable risk factors for family violence pertaining specifically to persons with SMI include substance use, nonadherence to medications and mental health treatment, history of violent behavior, and recent victimization. Notable risk factors pertaining specifically to the relationships between persons with SMI and family members include persons with SMI relying on family members for tangible and instrumental support, family members setting limits, and the presence of criticism, hostility, and verbal aggression. As described in qualitative studies, family members often perceive violence to be connected to psychiatric symptoms and inadequate treatment experiences. We argue that promising strategies for preventing violence by persons with SMI toward family members include (1) better engaging persons with SMI in treatment, through offering more recovery-oriented care, (2) strengthening support services for persons with SMI that could reduce reliance on family members, and (3) supporting the capabilities of family members to prevent and manage family conflict. The available interventions that may be effective in this context include McFarlane's Multifamily Group intervention and the Family-to-Family educational program.

Testing the Effectiveness of a Salutogenic Model for Reducing Suicidal Tendencies in a Population of Elderly and Young Adults

Suicide is a leading cause of mortality worldwide, with the elderly having the highest suicide rates. This study tests the effectiveness of a salutogenic model in normative elderly people compared with young adults in protecting against risk behaviors and suicidal tendencies, based on two variables: locus of control and meaning in life (mediating variable between locus of control and suicidal tendency). Participants were 191 people aged 65 to 100 years and 200 young adults aged 18 to 28 years old. Participants completed questionnaires on locus of control and purpose in life and were assessed for suicidal tendencies. Findings reveal a negative effect of age on locus of control, purpose in life, and a negative correlation between purpose in life and internal locus of control and suicidal tendency. Purpose in life mediates between internal locus of control and suicidal tendency in both populations. The salutogenic model has significant implications and can be used to reduce suicidal tendencies.

The coping process of Japanese parents who experience violence from adult children with schizophrenia

With the acceleration of deinstitutionalization might increase families' chances of suffering violence by patients. This study clarified parents' coping processes with violence experienced from patients with schizophrenia. The grounded theory approach was used, and 26 parents were interviewed. We identified a four-stage coping process: (1) hope for treatment, (2) living with violence, (3) trying to solve violence, and (4) last solution for violence. This coping process had two illness-related characteristics: (1) a process of coping with two main stressful events (the illness and violence), and (2) the need for long-term appraisal of violence because of its unclear causes.