Family photographs: Expressions of parents raising children with disabilities

The purpose of this qualitative, descriptive study was to capture the everyday lives of parents raising a child with a disability. Fifteen parental dyads raising a child with Down syndrome, developmental disabilities, visual impairments, or speech disorders used a disposable camera to photograph images important to them. Interviews about these photographs reflected everyday life. Four themes emerged from content analysis of the photos: active activities, quiet activities, activities of daily living, and care of the child with a disability. Six themes emerged when discussing photographs participants would have liked to take but did not. These themes were acceptance, concern for the future, joys, struggles, balance of good and bad times, and normalcy. Findings support the usefulness of photography as a method of obtaining information from parents raising a child with a disability through qualitative means and provide nurses with a beginning understanding of these parents' lives.