| الوصف: |
Background: The concept of fear can be defined as ”an unpleasant often strong emotion caused by expectation of danger”. It is reasonable to believe that fear and coping of fear, can vary during the course of treatment for ALL. The aim of the present study was to describe a longitudinal perspective on fear related to having ALL, based on children’s perspective, as well as to describe the strategies these children use when experiencing fear.Design: The study has a longitudinal descriptive qualitative design. Three girls and 10 boys, initially aged 5-9 were interviewed once to three times during their treatment period (approximately two months after the diagnosis, after one year and at the end of the 2.5-year long treatment). In total, 35 interviews were conducted. Data were analyzed using a matrix-based qualitative analysis method.Results: The children described fear of being subjected to needles and related to having a feeding tube, to remove adhesive tape and taking tablets, as well as fear related to the bodily changes caused by the ALL. Existential fears were most frequently mentioned at end of treatment. The children wanted to participate in their care. They used cognitive strategies, such as ”thinking the right way” and emotional strategies, such as crying out loud and kicking. The fears changed over time, but the fear of being subjected to needles remained for half of the children, but was less intense at the end of treatment. The strategies developed, and became more sophisticated over the treatment period.Conclusion: The fear changed throughout the course of treatment, and so did the strategies used. It is reasonable to believe that the need for support also vary, which is a topic for future research. |
