Year: 2001
Type: dissertation
Abstract: Chronic pain sufferers are frequently misunderstood and stigmatised. The aim \nof this investigation was to provide a description of the lifewor1d of people with \nchronic low back pain, using the phenomenological method. Themes which emerged \nwere that the persistent nature of chronic pain makes it particularly difficult to endure, arousing a profound fear of the future. It causes a disruption in the relationship \nbetween the person and the body, in which the person is forced to function within the \nconstraints of pain. Sufferers are unable to fulfil social roles as expected and are \nforced to revise their goals and activities. The distress of their experience is mediated \nby the ability to make sense of their condition, finding meaning in the pain itself. \nThe study highlights the value of the phenomenological method in health \npsychology. Recommendations are made which may be of benefit to people with \nchronic pain and their families.
Author: Barbara Louise Wade
Language: English
Field: Health Professions
Domain: Health Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W272552165