The influence of relationships on the meaning making process: patients’ perspectives (original) (raw)
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Patients with life-threatening or chronic illness report an experience of increased positive psychological, social, and/or spiritual change during diagnosis and/or treatment of their illness, even in the face of unfavorable prognosis. This transformation begins through the ability to make their life meaningful by forming meaningful connections that emerge through self-introspection and relationships with a divine entity, nature, and other people. The Healing Experience in All Life Stressors (HEALS) assessment provides a way to identify distress-causing changes that may interfere with the development of meaning and psycho-social-spiritual homeostasis. Preliminary examination of responses to items on the HEALS and examination of the factor structure. The 48-item HEALS questionnaire was developed using a multistep process: literature review for concept development, item generation from qualitative data, and face and content validity by expert panel. In the current study, HEALS was comp...
Canadian oncology nursing journal = Revue canadienne de nursing oncologique, 1998
The nurse who hopes to respond to the experience of individuals and their families with a diagnosis of cancer must understand and explore meaning in illness. Meaning has been described as a fundamental dimension of personhood (Cassel, 1982). There can be little understanding of the person's behaviour and responses to cancer without understanding the meaning of illness in their lives. The meaning ascribed to a situation can have a profound impact on the individual and family's coping and adjustment and may influence their relationships with the health care team. Meaning in illness may be influenced by cultural beliefs, religion, values, life philosophy and past experience. Meaning goes beyond the surface reactions of the individual to the very depths of the person's soul and can be a source of despair and suffering. Meaning evolve throughout the illness trajectory and can have a profound influence on the person's lived experience. The skills required to understand mea...
The Role of Meaning in Life in Adjustment to a Chronic Medical Condition: A Review
EC Psychology and Psychiatry, 2018
Being diagnosed with a chronic disease can cause significant distress. Such an event can disrupt an individual’s ‘meaning in life’; their purpose in living. This can initiate an active search for a new purpose to reduce psychological, physical, and social distress, and improve adjustment to a medical disease. The objectives of this review are to describe the life changes that occur after the diagnosis of a chronic medical condition and to offer a framework, the Meaning in Life-Adjustment Framework, depicting the relationship be- tween meaning in life and variables associated with health, wellness, and adjustment. A literature search using keywords and subject headings was performed in five databases. After sorting according to predetermined criteria, 46 papers were included in this review. An analysis of these papers suggests that adjustment to a chronic medical condition consists of psychological, physical, and social changes that occur after the diagnosis of a medical condition. A diagnosis may cause psychological, physical and/or social distress for patients, which may cause a loss of purpose in life. For some patients, this diagnosis may prompt an active search for meaning to acquire or restore their sense of purpose in life. The processes of searching for and finding meaning in life is associate
Meaning in life: An important factor for the psychological well-being of chronically ill patients?
Rehabilitation Psychology, 2013
Purpose: This study aimed to investigate 2 dimensions of meaning in life-Presence of Meaning (i.e., the perception of your life as significant, purposeful, and valuable) and Search for Meaning (i.e., the strength, intensity, and activity of people's efforts to establish or increase their understanding of the meaning in their lives)-and their role for the well-being of chronically ill patients. Research design: A sample of 481 chronically ill patients (M ϭ 50 years, SD ϭ 7.26) completed measures on meaning in life, life satisfaction, optimism, and acceptance. We hypothesized that Presence of Meaning and Search for Meaning will have specific relations with all 3 aspects of well-being. Results: Cluster analysis was used to examine meaning in life profiles. Results supported 4 distinguishable profiles (High Presence High Search, Low Presence High Search, High Presence Low Search, and Low Presence Low Search) with specific patterns in relation to well-being and acceptance. Specifically, the 2 profiles in which meaning is present showed higher levels of well-being and acceptance, whereas the profiles in which meaning is absent are characterized by lower levels. Furthermore, the results provided some clarification on the nature of the Search for Meaning process by distinguishing between adaptive (the High Presence High Search cluster) and maladaptive (the Low Presence High Search cluster) searching for meaning in life.
Meaning Making in Cancer Survivors: A Focus Group Study
PLoS ONE, 2013
Background: Confrontation with a life-threatening disease like cancer can evoke existential distress, which can trigger a search for meaning in people after having survived this disease. Methods: In an effort to gain more insight in the meaning making process, we conducted four focus groups with 23 cancer survivors on this topic. Participants responded to questions about experienced meaning making, perceived changes in meaning making after cancer and the perceived need for help in this area. Results: Most frequently mentioned meaning making themes were relationships and experiences. We found that, in general, cancer survivors experienced enhanced meaning after cancer through relationships, experiences, resilience, goal-orientation and leaving a legacy. Some participants, however, also said to have (also) experienced a loss of meaning in their lives through experiences, social roles, relationships and uncertainties about the future. Conclusions: The results indicated that there is a group of cancer survivors that has succeeded in meaning making efforts, and experienced sometimes even more meaning in life than before diagnosis, while there is also a considerable group of survivors that struggled with meaning making and has an unmet need for help with that. The results of this study contribute to develop a meaning centered intervention for cancer survivors.
What does the word healing mean to you? Perceptions of patients with life-limiting illness
Palliative and Supportive Care
Introduction There is a growing consensus that patient-centered care is more effective in treating patients than a strictly biomedical model, where there are known challenges to involving the patient in assessments, treatment goals, and determining preferred outcomes. Objectives The current study seeks to integrate patient values and perspectives by exploring how people diagnosed with a life-limiting disease define healing in their own words. Methods As a part of a larger study that included cognitive interviewing, we asked the question “what does the word healing mean to you?” Data were collected during face-to-face interviews with patients from three metropolitan healthcare facilities. Results Thirty participants responded to the question “what does healing mean to you?” Seven themes were identified through the data analysis. These themes include acceptance, feeling better, pain, social support, process, religion/spirituality, and make whole. The feeling better, pain, and process ...
Makara Journal of Health Research, 2020
Background: Many elderly individuals receive lifelong treatment caused by chronic diseases with symptoms that affecting them physically, psychologically, socially, and spiritually. Spirituality plays an essential role in health conditions and social relationships given that it provides meaning to the elderly individuals life by allowing them to see the wisdom of life events experienced. This research aimed to explore the meaning of life among elderly individuals with chronic diseases. Methods: This research applied descriptive phenomenology using Colaizzi's method of thematic analysis among 13 elderly patients with chronic diseases. Results: Elderly individuals with chronic diseases found meaning through the following items: (1) surrender to God, (2) divine destiny, (3) care until death, (4) guarantee for health finance, (5) role replacement, and (6) observing the development of children and grandchildren. Conclusion: Elderly individuals with chronic diseases can obtained positive meaning in life through family support. Families are thus expected to facilitate the development of meaning in the lives of elderly individuals with chronic diseases to help them fulfill their spiritual needs.
Meaning in adjustment to cancer: A model of care
Palliative & Supportive Care, 2008
Objectives: In the clinical setting of cancer, meaning may well have a central role in the life changes the illness experience brings about. As health care professionals working with people with life-threatening illness, we are exposed to one of the major turning points in life and the ways people confront this transition. Meaning can assist coping by offering a framework, perspective, and counterbalance to the challenge of illness. However, the absence of meaning can be a precursor to profound despair.
Cogent Psychology, 2017
Meaning in life or lack of it is frequently associated to the psychological adjustment to disease. This study aims at contributing to the clarification of the concept and developing a meaning in life scale which may be applied either in a clinical population or in the general population as well as presenting its psychometric evaluation. Four samples were used to perform the psychometric analyses, of which three of them represented different diseases. Sample one consists of 200 patients with colorectal cancer, where 51% are males, sample two consists of 150 females with breast cancer and sample three consists of 92 male patients mainly with prostatic cancer. Sample four consists of 88 healthy subjects of which 37.5% are males. Confirmatory Factorial Analysis was performed, and the maximum likelihood extraction method was applied. Findings suggested a unidimensional scale with a good model of fit across the four samples, acceptable reliability and appropriate convergent validity. There was a negative relationship with Anxiety and Depression and a positive relationship with Quality of Life, Life Satisfaction, Optimism and Social Support. No differences were found in the new scale concerning gender and cancer types. The meaning in life scale is a promising tool to be used in health settings.
Measuring meaning in life following cancer
Quality of life …, 2006
Meaning in life is a multi-faceted construct that has been conceptualized in diverse ways. It refers broadly to the value and purpose of life, important life goals, and for some, spirituality. We developed a measure of meaning in life derived from this conceptualization and designed to be a synthesis of relevant theoretical and empirical traditions. Two samples, all cancer patients, provided data for scale development and psychometric study. From exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses the Meaning in Life Scale (MiLS) emerged, and includes four aspects: Harmony and Peace, Life Perspective, Purpose and Goals, Confusion and Lessened Meaning, and Benefits of Spirituality. Supporting data for reliability (internal consistency, test–retest) and construct validity (convergent, discriminant, individual differences) are provided. The MiLS offers a theoretically based and psychometrically sound assessment of meaning in life suitable for use with cancer patients.