Adjusting to bodily change following stoma formation: a phenomenological study

Thorpe, Gabrielle ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0639-4229, Arthur, Antony and McArthur, Maggie (2016) Adjusting to bodily change following stoma formation: a phenomenological study. Disability and Rehabilitation, 38 (18). pp. 1791-1802. ISSN 0963-8288

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Abstract

Purpose: Scant research has been undertaken to explore in-depth the meaning of bodily change for individuals following stoma formation. The aim of this study was to understand the experience of living with a new stoma, with a focus on bodily change. Method: The study adopted a longitudinal phenomenological approach. Purposeful sampling was used to recruit twelve participants who had undergone faecal stoma-forming surgery. Indepth, unstructured interviews were conducted at three, nine and fifteen months following surgery. A five-stage framework facilitated iterative data analysis. Results: Stoma formation altered the taken-for-granted relationship individuals had with their bodies in terms of appearance, function and sensation, undermining the unity between body and self. Increasing familiarity with and perceived control over their stoma over time diminished awareness of their changed body, facilitating adaptation and self-acceptance. Conclusions: Stoma formation can undermine an individual’s sense of embodied self. A concept of embodiment is proposed to enable the experience of living with a new stoma to be understood as part of a wider process of re-establishing a unity between body, self and world. In defining a framework of care, individuals with a new stoma can be assisted to adapt to and accept a changed sense of embodied self.

Item Type:	Article
Uncontrolled Keywords:	body image,colorectal surgery,embodiment,ostomy,self-acceptance,uk
Faculty \ School:	Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences > School of Health Sciences
UEA Research Groups:	Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences > Research Groups > Community and Family Health (former - to 2017) Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences > Research Groups > Health in Later Life (former - to 2017) Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences > Research Groups > Rehabilitation Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences > Research Groups > Dementia & Complexity in Later Life
Depositing User:	Pure Connector
Date Deposited:	22 Mar 2016 09:12
Last Modified:	17 May 2023 09:30
URI:	https://ueaeprints.uea.ac.uk/id/eprint/57658
DOI:	10.3109/09638288.2015.1107768

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