Heart failure and its impact on older women's lives

Abstract

Findings from this study indicate that no aspect of women's lives escapes the impact of HF. It causes immense losses in many areas of life, and requires tremendous changes in many aspects of daily living. Yet, drawing on inner resources of great strength and courage, these women learn to find contentment in their lives. They discover ways to create productive lives and deeply meaningful relationships, within the boundaries imposed by HF.

The Experience of Fatigue among Elderly Women with Chronic Heart Failure

“…Fatigue is reported in both quantitative [1,2] and qualitative [3,4] studies to be one of the most common and distressing symptoms among people with chronic heart failure (CHF). In a group of elderly with CHF over 80% reported fatigue, shortness of breath, having difficulties to walk or climb stairs and having to rest during the day [2].…”

Correlates of psychological distress in elderly patients with congestive heart failure

“…For example, patients with CHF or other cardiac diseases who report more severe symptoms of fatigue and dyspnea have higher levels of psychological distress [24,27]. Whether such a relationship is mediated through the compromised functional status of the patients as a result of the clinical symptoms [7,8,28] or occurs when the debilitating symptoms diminish the sense of physical integrity of CHF patients [29] is unclear. As for functional ability, it appeared to have more evident relationship with psychological status when it was measured as patients' perception of limitation in performing daily functioning, rather than with objective methods [19,30].…”

Safety and understanding: Support as experienced by women living with heart failure in middle age

“…Findings of Mårtensson et al (1998) also illuminated that older women may be annoyed about their inability to do what they used to do, and may have a sense of worthlessness and may feel more burdensome to other person's, which is in line with the middle-aged women participating in the current study. Rhodes and Bowles (2002), however, described that older women do not appear to be concerned with anxiety, even though they experience loss and a threat against possibilities to control their life-situation. However, to gain control over their life-situation they have to struggle (Rhodes & Bowles, 2002), which seems to be in line with the middle-aged women in the current study.…”

“…Rhodes and Bowles (2002), however, described that older women do not appear to be concerned with anxiety, even though they experience loss and a threat against possibilities to control their life-situation. However, to gain control over their life-situation they have to struggle (Rhodes & Bowles, 2002), which seems to be in line with the middle-aged women in the current study. Our findings, however, showed that the women seemed to be struggling foremost to be themselves, i.e.…”

“…Living with heart failure (HF) means living in a limited and changed life-situation (Mårtensson, Karlsson & Fridlund, 1997;Ekman, Ehnfors & Norberg, 2000;Rhodes & Bowles, 2002;Nordgren, Asp & Fagerberg, 2007). The life-situations of men and women with HF differ, however, (cf.…”