Table 6 Summary of content in the identified sub-themes in the third theme
Sub-theme | Summary of content illustrating women’s experiences |
|---|---|
Social support and family life | Social support, including peer support, was important before, during, and after forced migration, as women exchanged emotional, informational, and instrumental social support [37, 39, 41, 42, 46, 49, 52, 54, 59] |
The family was a source for enduring difficult experiences, providing relief and reducing psychological distress [37, 43, 46, 49, 52, 54, 56, 59] | |
Motherhood in itself was a source for resilience and agency [39, 41, 46, 47, 49, 51, 53, 54, 59, 60] | |
Social support was essential during stressful circumstances such as pregnancy and childbirth [39] | |
Utilizing internal sources and strategies | Women tried to uphold daily life and their safety, living day by day [37, 39, 48, 49, 54] |
Women were hopeful of a better future, for example through religion and faith [39, 41,42,43, 46,47,48,49, 52,53,54, 56, 57, 59] | |
Women stopped visiting relatives in jail [57] | |
Women became violent towards their children and developed self-harming behaviors [42] | |
Women succumbed to passivity and resignation as a coping mechanism [48, 59] | |
Women kept their feelings concealed, were vigilant, and acted like they didn’t understand [51, 52, 60] | |
Women were resourceful in: (i) getting men to be less violent and to protect themselves and others [38, 42, 51, 59]; (ii) retaining mental stability and restarted their lives when necessary [41, 54] | |
Women took control of the situation by finding ways to make a living and find safe places [39, 41, 46, 48, 51, 52, 55, 59] | |