Coping strategies and emotional well-being in children with disease-related pain

Abstract

Disease-related pain and the consequences of pain in children and families are important areas for further research inquiry. There are limited data on the relationship between children's emotional well-being, their experience of pain, and the strategies they employ to cope with pain within the context of serious medical illnesses. Understanding what strategies chronically ill children use to cope with pain and stress is essential for clinical intervention. This observational study examined the ways that children and adolescents with chronic diseases cope with pain and adapt to illness. The data were collected by self-report measures and projective drawing techniques in a novel way to assess the emotional functioning in a mixed cohort of youth with disease-related pain (oncological, rheumatic, and cystic fibrosis). This protocol was administered to 47 children, aged 7-14, recruited from pediatric wards of hospitals of Trento and Rovereto (Italy). The results showed that coping strategies in youth with disease-related pain differed across diagnoses and with self-representations (as part of the self-concept adaptive mode). We also provide evidence of the applicability of using projective drawing methods in assessing coping in youth with chronic illness and associated pain.

Anxiolytic effects of polydatin through the blockade of neuroinflammation in a chronic pain mouse model

“…Pain and emotional disorders likely share the same pathobiological pathway, which is noteworthy for treating this comorbidity. 39,40 CFA-injected mouse model is manifested to possess pain and anxiety-like behaviors synchronously. Polydatin, isolated from the rhizome, effectively relieved CFA-induced anxiety-like behaviors in mice.…”

“Illustrating” the Role of the Expressive Arts Among Children and Youth with Cystic Fibrosis: A Narrative Review

“…Under this framework, the genetic, cellular, and physiological underpinnings of CF are examined, all of which are collectively treated as the main indicators of one's quality of life (Borowitz et al, 2016;Chandler et al, 2018;Marshall & Nelson, 2014). Only recently has the literature on health research witnessed a shift toward embracing the biopsychosocial model, which also highlights one's psychological and social functioning in response to illness (Beerbower, Winters & Kondrat, 2018;Brown, 2007;Failo et al, 2018). A meta-analysis conducted by Pinquart examined body image issues among youth with CF as well as diseases such as scoliosis, cancer, and diabetes (2013).…”

“…A meta-analysis conducted by Pinquart examined body image issues among youth with CF as well as diseases such as scoliosis, cancer, and diabetes (2013). Studies such as this are representative of a trend in the current literature, by which CF is often situated alongside other chronic illnesses such as cancer, diabetes, and heart disease, rather than featured in its own right (Brown, 2007;Daveson & Kennelly, 2000;Failo et al, 2018). Although such studies are invaluable for offering breadth on the subject of psychosocial implications of illness, however, they do not address the complexities of CF exclusively.…”

“…However, a major distinction exists in that some studies used somewhat standardized forms of art to collect data while others allowed participants total autonomy in their expression. Four studies used projective drawing activities, which directed participants to draw specific items such as a self-portrait, a family, or a tree (Failo et al, 2018;Fereday et al, 2009;Goodill, 2005;Pop-Jordanova & Demerdzieva, 2016). One of these projective studies asked children and youth to photograph and draw the physical activities that they engaged in (Fereday et al, 2009).…”

Coping-Strategies of Adolescents’ Behaviour Prone to Deviant Behaviour

“…Coping behaviour was researched in children with metastases [10], with chronic somatic diseases including those accompanied by severe pain syndrome [11], in children with the oppositional defiant behaviour in the frameworks of the cognitive-behaviour psychotherapy [12].…”