The Relationship between Coping Strategies and Parenting Stress in Childhood Epilepsy

Background: Epilepsy is a common childhood disease that can lead to high stress levels in parents, subsequently affecting family dynamics. The coping strategies practised by parents often play a major role in determining the level of parenting stress. Objective: This study aimed to identify the proportion of parents with parenting stress among those who have children with epilepsy, to compare the level of stress in different domains (parent, child, and parent-child interaction) as well as to examine the relationship between parenting stress and parental coping strategies. Methods: In this cross-sectional study, a total of 61 parents of children with epilepsy aged between 2 to 12 years old were recruited from the Pusat Perubatan Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (PPUKM) paediatric clinic over eight months. Validated questionnaires were used to determine the parenting stress level and coping strategies. Results: The proportion of parents with high stress scores (13.1%) was lower in this study compared to previous studies, except for non-Malay parents. Among the three domains, 29.5% of parents reported a high stress level under Parent-Child Dysfunctional Interaction (P-CDI). A negative correlation was observed between active coping and total parenting stress scores (TPSS) (r = -0.323, p = 0.011). In contrast, there was a positive correlation between self-blame coping and TPSS (r = 0.315, p = 0.014). Conclusion: Parents of children with epilepsy mostly reported low TPSS, except for non-Malays. Parents are encouraged to practise more active coping and less self-blame in managing children with newly diagnosed epilepsy.