A qualitative study of younger men's experience of heart attack (myocardial infarction)

Merritt, Christopher; Zoysa, Nicole de; Hutton, Jane

doi:10.1111/bjhp.12249

Cited by 9 publications

(31 citation statements)

References 63 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…Studies have found that young adults with specific individual conditions have a sense of being different; struggle with a shift from an identity of healthy to sick; and feel that the challenges they face are not age-appropriate. [24][25][26][27] Relevant to the impact of LTCs on identity is the concept of biographical disruption. 28,29 For those with LTCs, there is a biographical disruption between the individual's definition of themselves with regard to the past, the present and the future.…”

Section: Young Adults With Ltcsmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

The impact of living with long‐term conditions in young adulthood on mental health and identity: What can help?

Wilson

Stock

2019

Health Expectations

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

BackgroundIt has been suggested that the mental health impacts of living with long‐term conditions are greater in young adulthood compared to older adulthood, due to greater disruption to identity and routine life events.ObjectivesTo explore the impact of living with long‐term conditions in young adulthood on mental health and identity, and what helps living well with these conditions.MethodsFifteen in‐depth interviews with young adults with various conditions were conducted and analysed thematically.ResultsThemes related to the impacts on mental health and identity include the following: negative mood and depression; anxiety and fear for the future; and identity as ‘ill’/abnormal compared to former self and ‘normal’ others. Themes related to suggestions for addressing negative impacts include the following: promotion of positive thinking; support reaching acceptance with altered identity and limitations (through stages of denial, anger, depression, then acceptance); and more professional mental health support.DiscussionIn order to promote mental health and a positive sense of self/identity, young adults with long‐term conditions should be offered advice and support on positive thinking; the long and difficult process of reconstructing identity; and reaching acceptance. This is particularly important for young adults for whom the identity reconstruction process is more complex and psychologically damaging than for older adults, as this life stage is associated with health/vitality and illness represents a shift from a perceived normal trajectory to one that appears and feels abnormal.

show abstract

Section: Young Adults With Ltcsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Other studies exclusively with young adults have also touched on this topic. Studies have found that young adults with specific individual conditions have a sense of being different; struggle with a shift from an identity of healthy to sick; and feel that the challenges they face are not age‐appropriate …”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The impact of living with long‐term conditions in young adulthood on mental health and identity: What can help?

Wilson

Stock

2019

Health Expectations

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…In qualitative studies, a “heightened sense of mortality” was described by the participants throughout the first year after diagnosis (Lacharity, 1999 ; Andersson et al, 2013 ; Joubert et al, 2013 ), although it was described less often by men for whom it was difficult to accept death as a nearby possibility (Merritt et al, 2017 ). Emotional distress and the heightened sense of mortality were found in several expressions of fear: of dying in their sleep, of dealing with another MI (Andersson et al, 2013 ), of pain (Joubert et al, 2013 ), or of other injuries provoked by the disease (Lacharity, 1999 ; Koutrolou-Sotiropoulou et al, 2016 ).…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The patients also felt guilt and responsibility with regards to their family and to past bad lifestyle choices (McAnirn et al, 2015). These feelings seemed to last up to a year later, according to some high-quality studies (Andersson et al, 2013;Merritt et al, 2017).…”

Section: Emotional Distressmentioning

confidence: 99%

What Do We Know About Young Adult Cardiac Patients' Experience? A Systematic Review

et al. 2020

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Background: Studies interested in patients coping with a cardiac illness usually focus on children, teenagers, and adults above the age of 55. Apart from the field of congenital heart diseases, there is a general lack of literature regarding young adult cardiac patients (18-55 years old) who seem to cope with psychosocial issues. Therefore, the objective of this paper was to gather all the research carried out concerning the psychological experiences of young adult cardiac patients. Methods and Results: A comprehensive, systematic review was conducted on quantitative, qualitative, and mixed-method studies in PsycINFO, PubMed, ScienceDirect, and Cochrane Library databases. Out of the 10,747 articles found, 32 were included. While we aimed to include many cardiac diseases, coronary patients dominated the data. Five main themes emerged: emotional states (depression, anxiety, emotional distress, and stress), quality of life (health-related quality of life, physical functioning, and sexuality), adjusting to the medical environment (coping with the disease, health behavior change, financial barriers, and interactions with medical professionals), social life (social support and work), and identity (parenthood, new challenges, and new meanings). The results highlighted that their levels of depression, anxiety, stress, and quality of life were sometimes worse than in the general population and than in older and younger patients coping with a cardiac illness. Social isolation, identity changes, work, and parenthood were the specific challenges that this population had to face. Furthermore, young adult cardiac patients showed worse health behavior profiles than the general population and felt that they lacked information from professionals, especially regarding sexuality. Compared to men, women had worse psychosocial outcomes, especially regarding depression, stress, emotional distress, and quality of life. Conclusions: Young adult cardiac patients are to be considered with their own identity and challenges. They may be in need of specific interventions, some dedicated to women, and better communication is necessary with their families and professional caregivers so as to improve the patient's mental health, quality of life, coping skills, and adherence.

show abstract

“…The results uncovered three main themes: “Being less than a man”, “Facing a bleak future”, and “Life has lost its meaning”. 16 Other qualitative studies in Iran have assessed the experiences of male and female elderly with CAD from which the following themes emerged: “ Having lost peace”, “Finding peace in spirituality” and “Having lost ones health and sexuality”. 17 – 20 …”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

<p>Life After Myocardial Infarction: A Qualitative Study on Experiences of Kurdish Patients Who Affected by Iran–Iraq War</p>

Sepehrian

Pooralmasi

Abdi

et al. 2020

PROM

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Background Coronary artery disease (CAD) is a major cause of death globally. Myocardial infarction (MI) secondary to CAD affects patients’ quality of life and their lifestyle. The experience of war can affect people’s perception of phenomena. Given the scarcity of information in Kurdish patients with MI, the current study was designed to explore the lived experiences of individuals after MI in Kurdish patients affected by Iran–Iraq war. Methods This interpretive-phenomenological study was conducted on eleven patients with MI (9 men, 2 women) at Imam Ali Hospital, Center for Heart Diseases, in Kermanshah, Iran, considering MI as a phenomenon. Data was collected by a semi-structured interview and analyzed using the Van Mannen method. We employed the Lincoln and Guba criteria to examine the credibility, confirmability, dependability, and transferability of data. MAXQDA software was used for data management. We followed the COREQ checklist to ensure the rigor of our study Results Four themes and ten sub-themes were emerged as (1) “changes in the quality of life” including (a) negative physical outcomes, (b) mental effects, (c) social support, (d) adopting healthy behaviors, (e) increase or decrease in self-efficiency, (f) previous experience, and (g) developing future behaviors; (2) “bodily perceptions and medical care” including (a) medical care: saving or terminating life?, (b) a new message from the heart; (3) “returning to spirituality against death” including (a) spirituality as a guiding principle, (b) accepting death as an eventual destiny; and (4) denial. Conclusion The results suggest that MI could change the quality of physical and mental health of the person, anywhere from deterioration to full recovery. Furthermore, the influence of spirituality and previous experience of war to overcome the complications of MI has been discussed, leading to either acceptance or denial of MI, and the consequences.

show abstract

A qualitative study of younger men's experience of heart attack (myocardial infarction)

Cited by 9 publications

References 63 publications

The impact of living with long‐term conditions in young adulthood on mental health and identity: What can help?

The impact of living with long‐term conditions in young adulthood on mental health and identity: What can help?

What Do We Know About Young Adult Cardiac Patients' Experience? A Systematic Review

<p>Life After Myocardial Infarction: A Qualitative Study on Experiences of Kurdish Patients Who Affected by Iran–Iraq War</p>

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About