Social Belonging as the Main Concern for Achieving Life Satisfaction When Adapting to Parkinson's Disease.

Lina Rosengren,Jan Lexell,Christina Brogårdh,Anna Forsberg

doi:10.3390/ijerph18168653

Abstract

Parkinson’s disease (PD) is a complex, progressive neurological condition that impacts daily life and reduces life satisfaction (LS). To achieve and maintain high LS, persons with PD (PwPD) must go through a process of change to adapt to their new life situation. However, our knowledge about this process is very limited. The aim of this study was to investigate the process of change, and the main concern in this process, in PwPD. To study the transitional experience of PwPD, an inductive qualitative approach, using Grounded Theory (GT), was employed. Thirteen participants (9 women, 3 men and 1 non-binary), with a mean age of 54 years (range from 47–62 years), participated in in-depth interviews. Data showed that social belonging is the main concern in the process of change for PwPD. In this process of change, they use strategies to comprehend, accept, adapt, and balance in their strive for social belonging, which in turn can enhance LS. Health care professionals can use this model with an interdisciplinary approach to support PwPD through a successful process of change to achieve social belonging, and thereby achieving and maintaining LS.

Highlights

One of the most common progressive neurological conditions is Parkinson’s disease (PD)
Our results suggest a relationship between social belonging and experiencing life satisfaction (LS)
We found that the main concern in the process of change is social belonging, which summarizes a process wherein the generated Grounded Theory (GT) is present throughout the four main categories: Comprehend, Accept, Adapt, and Balance

Summary

Introduction

One of the most common progressive neurological conditions is Parkinson’s disease (PD). It is caused by degeneration of dopaminergic neurons in the basal ganglia. The degeneration leads to motor symptoms, such as bradykinesia, rigidity, tremor, and postural instability. Non-motor symptoms, such as fatigue, insomnia, and cognitive impairment, as well as autonomic dysfunction, e.g., orthostatic hypotension [1], are common. PD is a complex condition, and its progression is highly individual. Regardless of the course of progression, an impact on everyday life is inevitable [2]. PD can affect a person’s ability to participate in daily activities [3] and lead to reduced life satisfaction (LS) [4,5,6]

Objectives

Methods

Results

Discussion

Conclusion