title: Support for and From Aging Mothers Whose Adult Daughters are Seriously Mentally Ill.
abstract: This article discusses, from the grandmother's perspective, the ways in which support is exchanged in families coping with serious mental illness. A strengths perspective was utilized to identify ways in which family members help each other. Employing a qualitative approach, this study focuses on interviews obtained from a sample of 22 aging mothers, aged 52-90, who are in contact with their daughters who have a mental illness. Grandmothers provided several kinds of support to their mentally ill adult daughters and to their grandchildren, who also supported the aging mother in numerous ways. As social workers seek to assist individuals with mental illness, it is important to assess the existing strengths of their intergenerational family context.
authors.affiliation: a School of Social Work , University of Michigan , Ann Arbor , Michigan , USA.
authors.forename: Ruth E
authors.initials: RE
authors.lastname: Dunkle
authors.affiliation: a School of Social Work , University of Michigan , Ann Arbor , Michigan , USA.
authors.forename: Berit
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Ingersoll-Dayton
authors.affiliation: a School of Social Work , University of Michigan , Ann Arbor , Michigan , USA.
authors.forename: Letha A
authors.initials: LA
authors.lastname: Chadiha
mesh_terms: D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D000328:Adult; D032721:Adult Children / Q000523:psychology*; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D005195:Family Relations / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D000066502:Grandparents / Q000523:psychology*; D006801:Humans; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000523:psychology / Q000534:rehabilitation; D028642:Persons with Psychiatric Disorders / Q000523:psychology*; D008875:Middle Aged; D009034:Mother-Child Relations / Q000523:psychology*; D009035:Mothers / Q000523:psychology*; D012944:Social Support; D012947:Social Work / Q000379:methods*
keywords: family constellation; intergenerational support and mental illness