Author(s)

Gunn Eva Solum Myren^1,2,3, Ingela Enmarker^1,2, Ellen Saur⁴, Ove Hellzen³

¹Centre for Care Research, Mid-Norway, Steinkjer, Norway.
²Faculty of Health Sciences, Nord-Trøndelag University College, Namsos, Norway.
³Department of Nursing Science, Mid-Sweden University, Sundsvall, Sweden.
⁴Department of Education, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway.

Respite care in the form of day care is one of the several respite services that aims to provide temporary relief to informal caregivers from their responsibilities of caring for a person with dementia. The purpose of this study was to illuminate the meaning of being an informal caregiver for a person with dementia living at home and receiving day care services. Narrative interviews were conducted, and data were analyzed using the phenomenological hermeneutic method. Two main themes emerged: “Living with limitations in everyday life” and “Having a life besides being a caregiver”. The comprehensive understanding suggested living with a person with dementia, changes and influences the informal caregiver’s life through a set of new roles and a new way of living and thinking. The result is discussed in light of Goffman’s analysis of the structures of social encounters from the perspective of the dramatic performance.

Dementia, Informal Caregivers, Day Care Services, Phenomenological Hermeneutic, Goffman

Solum Myren, G. , Enmarker, I. , Saur, E. and Hellzen, O. (2015) “Being Free Like a Bird”―The Meaning of Being an Informal Caregiver for Persons with Dementia Who Are Receiving Day Care Services. Open Journal of Nursing, 5, 109-119. doi: 10.4236/ojn.2015.52013.