A fractured journey of growth: making meaning of a ‘Broken’ childhood and parental mental ill-health

ABSTRACT

The psychopathological impact of parental mental ill-health on children is well known. However, little research explores positive and negative interpretations of such exposure in childhood, from the adult child's perspective. Using interpretative phenomenological Analysis this study sought subjective interpretations of the ‘lived’ experiences of growing up in a family with parental mental ill-health. A purposive sample of seven adult children provided data for analysis through semi-structured interviews. One superordinate theme: A fractured journey of growth to adulthood, overarched six subordinate themes. Four themes captured stigma, shame, social isolation and betrayal. Juxtaposed with this, two themes captured purposeful redefinition of self and psychological growth. This study captures the chronicity of traumatic distress and sense of betrayal experienced by these participants in childhood through unrelenting exposure to parental mental ill-health. However, despite unpredictability, fear, and neglect in childhood, they identified the emergence of inner strengths in adult life: unexpected growth in empathy and compassion, high resourcefulness, and personal authenticity through higher education. Findings highlight that positively redefining ‘self’ in adult life is possible in the aftermath of childhood trauma associated with parental mental ill-health. Implications for therapy include: (a) moving forward from childhood trauma and (b) managing ongoing family dynamics in adult-life.

RESUMEN

El impacto psicopatológico de la enfermedad mental parental en los hijos es bien conocido. Sin embargo, pocos estudios exploran las interpretaciones positivas y negativas de de la experiencia infantil, desde la perspectiva del hijo adulto. Mediante un análisis fenomenológico interpretativo (AFI), este estudio examinó las interpretaciones subjetivas de las experiencias ‘vividas’ al crecer en una familia con enfermedad mental parental. Una muestra intencional de siete hijos adultos proporcionó datos para ser analizados mediante entrevistas semiestructuradas. Un tema de orden superior: un viaje fracturado de crecimiento hacia la adultez , abarcó seis temas subordinados. Cuatro temas capturaron estigma, vergüenza, aislamiento social y traición. Junto con esto, dos temas capturaron la redefinición decidida de uno mismo y el crecimiento psicológico. Este estudio captura la cronicidad del malestar traumático y la sensación de traición que experimentaron los participantes en su infancia a través de la exposición constante a la enfermedad mental parental. Sin embargo, a pesar de la imprevisibilidad, miedo y abandono de la infancia, los participantes identificaron el surgimiento de fuerzas internas en la vida adulta: un crecimiento inesperado de la empatía y compasión, alta capacidad para solucionar problemas y originalidad personal a través de la educación superior. Los resultados destacan que tras el trauma infantil asociado a la enfermedad mental parental, es posible redefinir el 'self' positivamente en la vida adulta. Implicaciones para la terapia incluyen: (a) mejoría del trauma infantil; (b) manejo de la dinámica familiar en la vida adulta.

KEYWORDS:

• Interpretative phenomenological analysis
• parental mental illness
• cumulative childhood trauma
• posttraumatic growth
• positive and negative consequences

PALABRAS CLAVE:

• análisis fenomenológico interpretativo
• enfermedad mental parental
• trauma infantil acumulativo
• crecimiento postraumático
• consecuencias positivas y negativas

Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank the men and women who generously participated in this study and offered their deeply personal insights and reflections of childhood trauma.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Notes on contributors

Lynne McCormack PhD is a Senior Lecturer/Clinical Psychologist at the University of Newcastle, Australia and a psychosocial trainer for the Australian Red Cross. She has been a trauma therapist for over two decades including deployments overseas working with vulnerable groups in humanitarian emergencies. Her research interests lie in the coexisting relationship between negative and positive psychological effects of experiencing complex trauma particularly when validating support is absent.

Sarah White is a Doctor of Clinical Psychology from the University of Newcastle, Australia. She has been a therapist for six years and currently works in the area of child and adolescent mental health. Her clinical interests include working with complex trauma presentations and delivering family-based psychological interventions.

Jose Cuenca, Ph.D. is a Lecturer in Psychology at Universidad Iberoamericana, Puebla, Mexico, and affiliated with the University of Nottingham, UK. He has an interest in psychodynamic interventions for childhood trauma. His research interests are in the field of childhood and adolescent mental health, particularly behavioural manifestation of mental health problems in pre-adult years.