This Article Full Text (PDF) References Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Alert me to new issues of the journal Add to Saved Citations Download to citation manager Request Permissions Request Reprints Add to My Marked Citations Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via Google Scholar Citing Articles via Scopus Google Scholar Articles by Maxwell, V. Articles by Barr, O. Search for Related Content PubMed Articles by Maxwell, V. Articles by Barr, O. Social Bookmarking                         What's this?

With the Benefit of Hindsight

A Mother's Reflections on Raising a Child with Down Syndrome

Ballymoney, Antrim, N. Ireland

Owen Barr

School of Nursing, University of Ulster, N. Ireland

Learning disability services worldwide increasingly recognize people with learning disabilities as family members and aim to provide effective support which facilitates family cohesion. However, some professionals still hold stereotypical views about families within a pathological model and as being `in need'. This article outlines one mother's reflections on her experience of raising a child with Down Syndrome, how his presence impacted on the family, and how she as a person changed as a result. The focus is on how the mother feels as a person, and how she has grown throughout all the sadness she has had to face. The article may help professionals to understand family life from a mother's perspective when a child has learning disabilities, and to recognize the importance of effective listening, ongoing coordinated support, and learning to work in partnership.

Key Words: coping • Down Syndrome • families • listening • mothers

Journal of Intellectual Disabilities, Vol. 7, No. 1, 51-64 (2003)
DOI: 10.1177/1469004703007001983


CiteULike    Complore    Connotea    Del.icio.us    Digg    Reddit    Technorati    Twitter    What's this?

This article has been cited by other articles:

				O. Barr and R. McConkey A different type of appointment: the experiences of parents who have children with intellectual disabilities referred for genetic investigation Journal of Research in Nursing, November 1, 2007; 12(6): 637 - 652. [Abstract] [PDF]

				E. P.-y. Li, Y.-m. Liu, N. C.-y. Lok, and V. W.-k. Lee Successful experience of people with Down syndrome. J Intellect Disabil., June 1, 2006; 10(2): 143 - 154. [Abstract] [PDF]