“You can’t Cure it so you have to Endure it”: The Experience of Adaptation to Diabetic Renal Disease

The experience of adaptation to diabetic renal disease was examined from a phenomenological perspective and a set of strong themes relating to changes in lifestyle was identified: changes in the nature of involvement with the medical system, coping strategies, and hopes, fears, and expectations.

Abstract

In this study, the experience of adaptation to diabetic renal disease was examined from a phenomenological perspective. Twenty patients attending a diabetic renal clinic were interviewed in depth. Through the use of a template analysis approach, a set of strong themes relating to changes in lifestyle was identified: changes in the nature of involvement with the medical system, coping strategies, and hopes, fears, and expectations. Almost all participants attempted to construct a "good adaptation" in the face of the uncertainties surrounding their condition by adopting a stoic and fatalistic stance. This is discussed in the context of the claim that contemporary society holds emotional self-expression rather than stoical endurance to be the appropriate response to suffering.