Concussion Centre, Bloorview Research Institute, Holland Bloorview Kids Rehabilitation Hospital , Toronto, Canada.
Rehabilitation Sciences Institute, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto , Toronto, Canada.
Brain Inj. 2020 May 11;34(6):782-790. doi: 10.1080/02699052.2020.1753243. Epub 2020 Apr 21.
We explored the lived experience of high-school aged girls receiving social support during concussion recovery to better understand (1) how they define meaningful social support and barriers/facilitators to receiving it; (2) who provides that support; and (3) the role of peers.
In person, semi-structured interviews were conducted with 10 girls (aged 14-19 years) with a personal history of concussion.
Close friends, youth with personal history of concussion, and parents were identified as key providers of meaningful social support during concussion recovery. Participants identified specific examples of support provided by each group. Close friends built a sense of social inclusion that mitigated feelings of social isolation. Youth with a personal history of concussion used their lived experiences to communicate empathy and validate the participant's challenges. Parents assisted with practical challenges (e.g. accessing accommodations) by leveraging their "adult power". Participants identified that lack of understanding of their lived experiences was a key barrier to receiving support. They proposed solutions focused on education initiatives highlighting personal accounts from youth with concussion, and specific examples of how peers can help.
Fostering social support may require strategies tailored to each group of key providers as they mitigate different challenges in recovery.
我们探讨了在脑震荡康复期间接受社会支持的高中女生的生活体验，以更好地了解：(1) 她们如何定义有意义的社会支持以及获得社会支持的障碍/促进因素；(2) 谁提供了这种支持；以及 (3) 同伴的作用。
对 10 名有脑震荡个人史的 14-19 岁女孩进行了面对面的半结构化访谈。
亲密朋友、有个人脑震荡史的年轻人和父母被确定为脑震荡康复期间提供有意义社会支持的主要提供者。参与者确定了每个群体提供的支持的具体例子。亲密的朋友营造了一种社交包容感，减轻了社交孤立感。有个人脑震荡史的年轻人利用自己的生活经历来表达同理心并认可参与者的挑战。父母利用他们的“成人权力”来协助解决实际挑战（例如获得住宿）。参与者表示，缺乏对他们生活经历的理解是获得支持的一个主要障碍。他们提出了一些解决方案，重点是教育计划，强调来自脑震荡青年的个人经历，以及同伴可以提供帮助的具体例子。
促进社会支持可能需要针对每个主要提供者群体的策略，因为他们可以减轻康复过程中的不同挑战。
