Older women and chronic illness: learning to live with diabetes

Research Doctorate - Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)The first line of treatment for people diagnosed with Type 2 Diabetes is a change in diet (low fat, low carbohydrates, high fibre), and an increase in exercise to promote the uptake and utilisation of carbohydrates. If the blood glucose level is not stabilised by a change in diet and exercise, then hypoglycaemic tablets may be prescribed. In many cases insulin injections may be required if blood glucose levels cannot be controlled by diet and oral medication. People receiving a diagnosis of diabetes must absorb complex information and adopt a new life style almost immediately. The purpose of this study was to explore with women, and their family members, the ways in which the women learned to live with Type 2 Diabetes. My aim was to understand what happened to the women during their first year following a diagnosis of diabetes and how it impacted on them and their family members. Using a participatory action research (PAR) methodology I also wanted to explore with them, the practical ways in which they transitioned at this time. In this inquiry I asked eleven women recently diagnosed with diabetes what it was like for them in their first year since diagnosis. In this first year I journeyed alongside the women as they and their families learned to take the consequences of this chronic condition into their lives. The strength of this participatory action research (PAR) methodology was that I asked women to tell their own stories about learning to live with diabetes and I was able to walk alongside them for twelve months. In addition, I then brought family members into the conversation and they were able to share the impact their partner, mother, friend or spouse being newly diagnosed with diabetes had on their daily lives. My thesis was that older women newly diagnosed with diabetes learn to take this condition into their lives when they were ready to receive information. The quality of support they received from family, friends and health care professionals and their motivation and understanding impacted on the changes in their lives. The women’s learning process in this PAR group made a theoretical contribution to our understanding of group dynamics. My part in furthering transition theory is my main theoretical contribution