<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">

<sec><h3>Background</h3>
<p>The covid-19 pandemic has influenced children and parents worldwide. The pandemic has also been suggested to especially affect and exacerbate health anxiety (HA) symptoms in children and adolescents. However, there is limited understanding of the potential mechanisms challenges of families where parents themselves experience mental health issues such as high degree of HA symptoms.</p>
</sec>
<sec><h3>Objective</h3>
<p>The aim of this study was to explore parental experiences of pandemic life in families with continuously high levels of HA symptoms during the covid-19 pandemic.</p>
</sec>
<sec><h3>Method</h3>
<p>Six parents, identified with high levels of HA symptoms, participated in qualitative individual semi-structured interviews. Interviews were analysed according to Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis principles.</p>
</sec>
<sec><h3>Results</h3>
<p>Three main themes emerged. Theme 1) “Anxious children in a pandemic world” explores how pandemic – independent child factors including anxious temperament may have influenced the child pandemic experience. Theme 2) “Parental influences on child anxiety” describes parental reflections on their possible influence on child anxious thoughts. Theme 3) “Living with pandemic guidelines and restrictions” demonstrates the varying parental experiences of interventions and how these may affect HA thoughts.</p>
</sec>
<sec><h3>Conclusion</h3>
<p>Parents who themselves experience HA symptoms see their children, who also experience HA symptoms, to be particularly susceptible and vulnerable to both content and rhetoric of pandemic information. These children may however, experience school lockdown to be anxiety relieving. Parents who themselves have illness-related fears may not see themselves as perpetuating for their child's anxious thoughts.</p>
</sec>
</abstract>

Background
The covid-19 pandemic has influenced children and parents worldwide. The pandemic has also been suggested to especially affect and exacerbate health anxiety (HA) symptoms in children and adolescents. However, there is limited understanding of the potential mechanisms challenges of families where parents themselves experience mental health issues such as high degree of HA symptoms.

Objective
The aim of this study was to explore parental experiences of pandemic life in families with continuously high levels of HA symptoms during the covid-19 pandemic.

Method
Six parents, identified with high levels of HA symptoms, participated in qualitative individual semi-structured interviews. Interviews were analysed according to Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis principles.

Results
Three main themes emerged. Theme 1) “Anxious children in a pandemic world” explores how pandemic – independent child factors including anxious temperament may have influenced the child pandemic experience. Theme 2) “Parental influences on child anxiety” describes parental reflections on their possible influence on child anxious thoughts. Theme 3) “Living with pandemic guidelines and restrictions” demonstrates the varying parental experiences of interventions and how these may affect HA thoughts.

Conclusion
Parents who themselves experience HA symptoms see their children, who also experience HA symptoms, to be particularly susceptible and vulnerable to both content and rhetoric of pandemic information. These children may however, experience school lockdown to be anxiety relieving. Parents who themselves have illness-related fears may not see themselves as perpetuating for their child's anxious thoughts.

Pandemic life in families with health anxiety symptoms, parental perspectives

Child and Adolescent Psychiatric Research Unit, Mental Health Services in the Region of Southern Denmark

Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry

Scandinavian Journal of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychology

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

{"article-title":"Pandemic life in families with health anxiety symptoms, parental perspectives"}

Background
The covid-19 pandemic has influenced children and parents worldwide. The pandemic has also been suggested to especially affect and exacerbate health...

	n
Sex
Male (fathers)	1
Female (mothers)	5
Age
30–35 years	2
36–45 years	4
Marital status
Relationship with other parent	4
Relationship but not with other parent	1
Single	1
Education
Short^*	1
Medium long^**	2
Long^***	3
Children’s sex (age 10–12)
Boy	3
Girl	3
Received the covid-19 vaccine (parent)
Yes	3
No	3
Received the covid-19 vaccine (child)
Yes	2
No	4
Child internalizing problems at the age 3
Yes	3
No	3
Child internalizing problems at the age 5
Yes	2
No	2
Missing	2

Pandemic life in families with health anxiety symptoms, parental perspectives

Article Category: Research Article

Pubblicato online: 07 giu 2024

Pagine: 23 - 32

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/sjcapp-2024-0003

Parole chiave
Health anxiety, Qualitative Approaches, Covid-19, Child and Adolescent Mental Health, Parental worries

© 2024 Ida Kathrine Dalgaard et al., published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

FIGURE 1.

FIGURE 2.

Participant characteristics (n=6).

Pandemic life in families with health anxiety symptoms, parental perspectives

Article Category: Research Article

Pubblicato online: 07 giu 2024

Pagine: 23 - 32

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/sjcapp-2024-0003

Parole chiaveHealth anxiety, Qualitative Approaches, Covid-19, Child and Adolescent Mental Health, Parental worries

© 2024 Ida Kathrine Dalgaard et al., published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

FIGURE 1.

FIGURE 2.

Participant characteristics (n=6).

Parole chiave
Health anxiety, Qualitative Approaches, Covid-19, Child and Adolescent Mental Health, Parental worries