The experience of adolescents having mentally ill parents with pasung.

OBJECTIVE: Lack of knowledge and powerlessness make family restrains, chains or confines (pasung) the family member with mental illness. This study aimed to explore the experience of adolescents having mentally ill parents with pasung.

METHOD: To achieve detailed and accurate understandings of adolescents' experiences, this study used a qualitative research design with a phenomenological approach. Purposive sampling was employed to find teenagers aged 12-19 years old who had mentally ill parents with pasung. The data were analyzed with Colaizzi's method.

RESULTS: Parents with mental illness, specifically with physical restrain and confinement (pasung) had psychosocial impact on adolescents. Role changes often occur in the family where teenagers should be a breadwinner and caregiver for their parents. The results of this study were described in three themes: 1) changes of life due to have mentally ill parents with pasung; 2) reciprocity as the reason for taking care of the parents; 3) positive meaning of living with mentally ill parents with pasung.

CONCLUSIONS: This study concludes that psychosocial treatment for adolescents living with parents with pasung should consider the psychological and social impact as a result of taking care of their parents with pasung.