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Coping Strategies, Emotional Distress and Quality of Life in Relatives of Patients With Severe Brain Injury in Denmark: One Year After Injury

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  07 November 2013

Anne Norup ,
Lars Siert  and
Erik Lykke Mortensen
Anne Norup*
Affiliation:
RUBRIC Research Unit on BRain Injury rehabilitation Copenhagen, Department of Neurorehabilitation, Traumatic Brain Injury Unit, Copenhagen University Hospital, Glostrup, Denmark
Lars Siert
Affiliation:
RUBRIC Research Unit on BRain Injury rehabilitation Copenhagen, Department of Neurorehabilitation, Traumatic Brain Injury Unit, Copenhagen University Hospital, Glostrup, Denmark
Erik Lykke Mortensen
Affiliation:
Institute of Public Health and Center for Healthy Aging, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
*
Corresponding author: Anne Norup, Department of Neurorehabilitation, Traumatic Brain Injury Unit, RUBRIC Research Unit on BRain Injury rehabilitation Copenhagen, www.rubric.info Glostrup, Copenhagen University Hospital, Hvidovre, Denmark. Email: anne.norup@regionh.dk.
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Abstract

The present study describes coping strategies in a sample of 37 relatives of patients with severe brain injury and analyses associations between coping strategies and symptoms of anxiety depression and health-related quality of life one year after injury. The participants used the strategies active coping and use of emotional support most frequently. Less used strategies were humour, substance use, behavioural disengagement and self-blame. The results suggest that use of the strategies positive reframing and acceptance was associated with less anxiety, depression and better health-related quality of life one year after injury, whereas the use of the coping strategy denial was associated with a poorer outcome in the relatives.

Keywords

severe brain injuryone-year follow-upcoping strategiesrelativescaregiversanxietydepressionhealth-related quality of lifebrief COPESCL-90-R
Type
Articles
Information
The Australian Journal of Rehabilitation Counselling , Volume 19 , Special Issue 2: Family Support and Adjustment Following Acquired Brain Injury: An International Perspective , December 2013 , pp. 142 - 154
Copyright
Copyright © The Author(s), published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of Australian Academic Press Pty Ltd 2013 

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