Välbefinnande och sexualitet för kvinnor i en parrelation. : En fenomenologisk intervjustudie.

The aim of the study was to focus on well-being and sexuality for a woman in a couple’s relationship. Seven women were interviewed and the analysis was carried out with a phenomenological approach based on lifeworld theory. The respondents reported their lived experiences of well-being. The result is summarized in five constituents: the relationship’s common living-space, looking for companionship, the relationship as touching, the intimacy of the relationship and the importance of other people for the relationship. The basis of the experience of the phenomenon was found in the creation and maintenance of a companionship, a mutual exchange of meaning between two individuals that generated a sensation of being touched and extended outside of the physical spatial limitations. The phenomenon occurred when the risk for being hurt was replaced by trust and self-exposure. The intimacy of the relationship was able to prevent or remove the feeling of exclusion. The companionship of the relationship consisted of living in an existential context, of realizing one’s potential and of planning for the future. The phenomenon’s outer horizon consisted of the feeling of exclusion in not being able to relate to another person. The study is significant in a caring context where communication can include the body as an existential instrument and sexuality as an aspect of quality of life and well-being. Further research in the field can focus on how women cope with a lack of a sense of companionship in a relationship