Study of Stress Experienced by Parents about Their Children and Adolescents during COVID-19 Pandemic. Fayoum Governorate. Egypt.

a major external stressor, COVID-19 pandemic with all its negative consequences as the lockdown, social obligations, changes in routine and online schooling, health concerns, rapidly increasing affected cases and deaths constitutes a major health concern which heavily affected the psychological wellbeing. Parents are highly vulnerable group and showed high levels of perceived stress during this critical period. This study aimed to assess the stress experienced by parents during the COVID period. Online Google forms and hard copies contained demographic data, perceived stress scale and risk factors were filled by parents (with age ranges from 20-60) of offspring aged till 18 years old. 1265 valid questionnaires with vast majority (93.9%) were mothers. Moderate degree of stress was found in 70.3%. Multivariate regression model for predicting PSS was significantly related to the age category, parenthood and history of psychic trauma. Majority of parents experienced moderate to high grades of stress. The perceived stress was more evident in mothers, also affected by other factors which affect resilience like age, history of previous psychic trauma, and history of COVID infection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]