ABSTRACT
Objective
To analyse the context in which the diagnosis of autism is revealed and the impact of this revelation on family relationships.
Methods
This is a qualitative study with 10 families of autistic children assisted at the Psychosocial Care Centre for Children and Youths in a municipality of Paraíba. Data were collected between July and August 2013 through semi-structured interviews and interpreted using thematic content analysis.
Results
The identified Main Unit of Analysis and the respective categories were: the impact of disclosing the diagnosis of autism to the family; characteristics of diagnosis disclosure: the place, time, and the dialogic relationship between the professional and the family; changes in family relationships and the mother’s burden when caring for the autistic child.
Conclusions
The health professionals who report autism should better prepare the family to cope with the difficulties of this syndrome and autonomously care for the autistic child.
Autistic disorder; Diagnosis; Family relations