In the Shadow of Illness
Edition: New Ed edition
Publisher: Princeton University Press
Published: May 30, 2000
Language: eng
Format: Paperback
Number of pages: 328
ISBN-13: 9780691050799
Subjects: Coping with illness; Family & relationships; Family welfare; Psychology; Family Relationships; Health - General; Death And Dying (Sociological Aspects); Psychological Aspects Of Bereavement; Social Science; Diet / Health / Fitness; Sociology; Pediatrics; Children with Special Needs; Anthropology; Biological Sciences; Medical / Pediatrics; Death & Dying; Death, Grief, Bereavement
First sentence: THIS CHAPTER introduces the reader to some of the previous work on well siblings and to the present study.
Description: The Private Worlds of Dying Children, Bluebond-Langner's previous book, now considered a classic in the field, explored the world of terminally ill children. In her new book, she turns her attention to the lives of those who live in the shadow of chronic illness: the parents and well siblings of children who have cystic fibrosis. Through a series of narrative portraits, she draws us into the daily lives of nine families of children at different points in the natural history of the illness - from diagnosis through the terminal phase. In these portraits, as family members talk about their experiences in their own words, we see how parents, well siblings, and the ill children themselves struggle, in different ways, to contain the intrusion of the disease into their lives. Bluebond-Langner looks at how parents adjust their priorities and their idea of what constitutes a normal life, how they try to balance the needs of other family members while caring for the ill child, and how they see the future. This context helps us understand how well siblings view the illness and how they relate to their ill sibling and parents. Since the issues raised are not unique to cystic fibrosis but are common to other chronic and life-threatening illnesses, this book will be of interest to all who study, care for, or live with the seriously ill.