Aging with physical disabilities: experience intersected by stigma, social isolation and finitude

Abstract

Objective: To understand the experience from a perspective of elderly people with physical disabilities. Method: Qualitative study that interviewed 15 people from the Mato Grosso Association of Disabled Person. Testimonies were obtained from 2016 July to 2017 June in the metropolitan region of Cuiabá/Brazil. Data were organized in thematic categories and analyzed through social phenomenology of Alfred Schütz. Results: It was evidenced that the stigma intersects the experience of the physical deficiency including in the old age. The perpetuation of stigma translated into impaired identity, social isolation, lack of perspective and acceptance of finitude as inevitable, contributing to a negative experience in old age. Conclusion and implications for practice: The experience of aging with physical disability has an intrinsically multidimensional nature, confronting complex lives and social contexts hostile to the body diversity, which need to be considered in public policies, by service managers and professionals involved in the processes of care for the elderly with physical disability.

Perceptions and experiences of functional mobility for community‐dwelling older people: A focused ethnography

“…Participants felt not just stigmatised by their mobility challenge, but also by their age, which may also have contributed to the lack of integration between their mobility challenges to their self‐identity. It is known that older people living with mobility challenges may be particularly stigmatised, as they are branded by both their age and their disability status (Martins et al, 2018). This situation is not different in Brazil, where ageing and disability have negative cultural connotations due to the high appreciation of youth and body aesthetics (Andrade, 2011; Couto & Koller, 2012; Goldani, 2010; Vasconcelos, 2012).…”

Percepção de idosos na promoção da saúde auditiva

“…O último tema descodificado "Superação das dificuldades", proporcionou aos participantes dos Círculos de Cultura a manifestarem seus sentimentos, que estão presentes na vida de muitos idosos. Mostraram-se felizes em poder compartilhar suas vivências, dentre elas as suas dificuldades e a importância de participarem de grupos que despertam para o conhecimento e reflexões sobre suas vidas, Graziela Bernardo, Dayane Potgurski, Daniela Silva, Janaina Souza, Ivonete Heidemann, Aline Arakawa-Belaunde significativo na experiência vivenciada diante o processo de envelhecimento 13 .…”

Social Isolation in the Elderly, Global Presence, Consequences, and Possible Solutions

“…Researchers have found the intersection between disability, isolation, and aging complex (Martins et al 2018). As people with physical disabilities become older, their isolation may peak or exacerbate as their mobility declines (Martins et al 2018).…”

“…Researchers have found the intersection between disability, isolation, and aging complex (Martins et al 2018). As people with physical disabilities become older, their isolation may peak or exacerbate as their mobility declines (Martins et al 2018). For instance, a study of isolation and loneliness in the elderly in the UK found that over a quarter of elderly individuals reported that they were not involved in their community because they were disabled or were taking care of someone who was disabled (Wigfield and Alden 2018).…”