[The meaning of caregiving experience lived by Lebanese family caregivers of stroke survivors at home].
Introduction six million of deaths are due today to stroke, while stroke survivors will depend on their caregivers at home.


BACKGROUND
As the literature noted in, these caregivers meet challenges and satisfactions, encouraging them to resort to adaptation strategies in order to cope with their care situation.


OBJECTIVE
The purpose of this article is to describe and understand the experience of Lebanese family caregivers who take care at home of a relative stroke survivor.


METHODS
Using the phenomenological approach of Giorgi (1997), twelve interviews were conducted with six family caregivers who have been recruited through a rehabilitation center in Beirut.


RESULTS
Eight themes have emerged from the phenomenological analysis: the family caregiver burden, the missing social support, the learning through his experience of a family caregiver, the contribution to caregiving survivor, the selflessness in the caregiving, the gratitude in the caregiving, the familiarization with new routines and reconciliation with new lifestyle. The proposed essence from this phenomenological analysis is: the satisfaction in taking care of the stoke survivor by facing challenges and bringing order into the chaos caused by the stroke.


CONCLUSIONS
The knowledge gained from this study would allow nurses to identify family caregivers at risk in order to help them to adapt to their new role as caregivers, and to develop health promotion strategies, taking into consideration their experience.
Samy
S
Taha
Rima Sassine
RS
Kazan
D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D017028:Caregivers / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007407:Interviews as Topic; D007861:Lebanon; D008016:Life Change Events; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012944:Social Support; D020521:Stroke / Q000523:psychology*; D017741:Survivors