Psychologic adaptation of children to epilepsy in a parent.

A prospective study of the children in 12 families examined the impact of and adjustments to epilepsy in one of the parents. Young children allowed to see the parent's seizures and the treatment for those seizures adapted to the threat of illness in a parent by becoming involved in the care and supervision of the affected adult. Parents concealing the neurologic disorder from their children faced the most anger and resentment when the children discovered the epilepsy. Uncompromising and consistent disclosure of the problem to the children, regardless of their ages, by the parents allowed the children to adjust to the epilepsy while maintaining trust in and concern for both parents.