The whirlwind : mothers' experiences of parenting a child with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder

The aim of this research was to generate a grounded theory of how mothers of children with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), experience parenting their child. Interviews were conducted with eight mothers who all had at least one child with ADHD who was under seven years of age. The period that had elapsed since diagnosis ranged from two months to four years. The interview data was analysed using the grounded theory method. Analysis revealed that the mothers' main task from pre- diagnosis to four years post diagnosis was to 'adapt' to their child. The mothers had to adapt to the effects of having a child with ADHD, they had to adopt new coping strategies and there was also found to be adaptation taking place in the wider systems, such as health and education. Findings suggest that there is a developmental trajectory of how mothers adjust to this disorder over time. Recommendations are made for the implementation of multi-disciplinary assessment for ADHD and the use of groups for mothers focusing on behaviour management, attachment issues and the building up of relationships between the mothers.