title: Family members' of persons living with a serious mental illness: experiences and efforts to cope with stigma.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Studies have indicated that family members of persons with mental illness often experience stigma in relation to their relatives' illness. Less is known about the type of experiences they face and how they cope with these experiences.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To explore family members' experiences and efforts to cope with mental illness stigma in social encounters.
  
  
  METHODS
  A qualitative immersion/crystallization analysis of focus group data was used to examine family members' experiences and responses to perceived stigma.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Family members reported experiencing rejection, blame and avoidance by others, engendering hurt, disappointment and shame. They employed flexible coping strategies depending on their personal resources, motivation and their relatives' willingness to disclose.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Findings suggest that families learn from their own experience the "art of selective disclosure": what, when, how much and who to share information with. Coping strategies are developed based on the situation and family members' needs and personal resources which differ between families and over time.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medical Education, Sackler School of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel. OritKM@gmail.com
authors.forename: Orit
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Karnieli-Miller
authors.forename: Deborah A
authors.initials: DA
authors.lastname: Perlick
authors.forename: Ann
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Nelson
authors.forename: Kate
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Mattias
authors.forename: Patrick
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Corrigan
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Roe
mesh_terms: D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D005190:Family / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D028642:Persons with Psychiatric Disorders; D057545:Social Stigma