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We synthesized selected literature from psychology, neuroscience, occupational therapy, nursing, and other fields regarding parents of children with ASD and utilized Matuska and Christiansen's Model of Lifestyle Balance to organize the literature to present a theoretically grounded and occupation-based picture of the life experiences of parents of children with ASD. In doing so, we discerned a complex relationship among the five dimensions suggested by Matuska and Christiansen, prompting a refinement of their model to address this complexity. Overall, a variety of factors associated with caring for children with ASD have the potential to cause or contribute to negative psychological consequences such as stress, anxiety, and depression, as well as functional limitations and other health problems such as hypertension or diabetes. In order to promote health and general well-being, lifestyle changes to enhance balance may be necessary for many parents of children with ASD.
Duker et al. (Fri,) studied this question.
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