Feeling Uncomfortable: Children in Families with no Place of their Own

Abstract

The number of children living in shelters in the United States dramatically increased during the 1980s. Despite this increase in number, little is known about their experiences. The purpose of this research using Parse's method was to generate a structure of the lived experience of feeling uncomfortable for children in shelters. The investigator sought to expand nursing's knowledge base about feeling uncomfortable and to provide a better understanding of the experiences of children in families with no place of their own. The findings suggest that the lived experience of feeling uncomfortable for the participants is a disturbing uneasiness with the unsureness of aloneness with togetherness amidst longing for personal joyful moments. These findings, considered from Parse's human becoming theory, create a theoretical structure of feeling uncomfortable. Similarities and differences with related literature are discussed. Implications for practice and further research are offered.