Growth of Mothers with Mental Disabilities Who are Raising Children as Captured by Visiting Nurses

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to clarify the growth of mothers with mental disabilities who are raising children as observed by visiting nurses. A semi-structured interview was conducted with nine visiting nurses, and content analysis was performed.

The results revealed that visiting nurses perceived the growth of these mothers in “maintaining balance between herself with a mental disease and her role as a mother”, “consulting with others and requesting assistance”, “improving the way that she interacts with her children”, “establishing daily routines for her children” and “supporting her children so that they have a smooth school life”. It was concluded that visiting nurses captured that these mothers showed the process of growth: the mothers pay attention to the health condition of herself while being supported by others, raise her children by imagining herself in her children’s place, and then, play a role as members of the society. Furthermore, it was assumed that the growth of these mothers in “maintaining balance between herself with a mental disease and her role as a mother” and “consulting with others and requesting assistance”, interacted with the growth of their child-rearing abilities such as “improving the way that she interacts with her children”, “establishing daily routines for her children” and “supporting her children so that they have a smooth school life”.