Lived experiences of being a father of an adult child with schizophrenia

Abstract

The aim of this study is to analyze and describe lived experiences of being a father of an adult child with schizophrenia. Interpretations of interviews with seven Swedish fathers of sons or daughters with schizophrenia revealed a pattern of gradually changing existential consequences. After an initial period of shock when receiving the diagnosis, a long struggle to regain control follows. The findings are presented in a structure based on eight different aspects of this struggle, which seems to be characterized by a balance between grieving and adaptation. An important conclusion is that the fathers' life-world must be attended to in professional family interventions.