Feeding a child with mealtime challenges: A mother's work

The literature suggests that at least 25% of all children and up to 80% of children with developmental disabilities have some type of feeding and/or eating difficulty. Currently there is limited information in the literature related to mothers who are mothering young children with difficulties in the area of feeding and eating. Specifically there is little information available regarding how mothering a young child with difficulties in feeding and eating impacts participation in the work of mothering.

This paper discusses a piece of the qualitative portion of a mixed methods study. The qualitative portion of the study sought to examine the lived experience of mothers who were mothering a young child with feeding concerns.

Five women between the ages of 26 and 41 years of age agreed to participate in this portion of the study. All of the women were married and were mothering a child between 12 and 36 months experiencing concerns related to feeding.

Phenomenological methods were used to complete the qualitative portion of this study. Each woman participated in one interview in her own home that lasted between one and two hours.

Five themes emerged from the data analysis, feeling supported, seeking support, the range of emotions/feelings, dealing with the system, and the complexity of feeding. Two of the themes are discussed in this paper in detail as they relate to maternal work.

Data from this study were analyzed in relationship to maternal work. Findings highlight the difficulty of negotiating daily mealtime occupations and support the connection between mealtime occupations and maternal work as outlined by Ruddick.