Abstract
This study aims to examine the experiences of mothers who have mental disability children in adolescence. 15 mentally disabled adolescent children’s mothers are included in this research. ‘General Information Form’ is used to obtain information about the children and the family. Additionally, the ‘Semi-Structured Interview Questionnaire Form’ is performed to determine mothers’ views about life experiences. Collected data as part of the research is analyzed by using MAXQDA 2020
In our study, it is determined that the biggest issue mothers had during their experiences from the birth of their disabled children until their adolescence is psychological disorders. In this process that mothers experienced, it is emphasized that the current and future problems are lack of information, independence and who would take care of their children in the future. While some mothers indicate that the physical changes due to adolescence period do not make a difference in child’s behavior in general, some mothers state that they have difficulty in adapting to these changes in the process. Moreover, they indicate insufficiency of state support and educational opportunities, and deficiency of qualified educator as the experienced problems. In this study, it is highly recommended to form informing studies on mentally disabled children in adolescence and constitute psychological support programs for mothers to ease their concerns.