Perseverance by Older People in Their Management of Chronic Pain: A Qualitative Study: Table 1

Abstract

"Keeping going" was a priority for most of the participants. It may be beneficial to identify the ways in which older people persevere despite chronic pain. It is important for health professionals to appreciate the social factors which are important to, and valued by, older people who experience chronic pain.

“I Try and Smile, I Try and Be Cheery, I Try Not to Be Pushy. I Try to Say ‘I'm Here for Help’ but I Leave Feeling… Worried”: A Qualitative Study of Perceptions of Interactions with Health Professionals by Community-Based Older Adults with Chronic Pain

“…Our interpretation is that the social comparisons we witnessed were harmful in the sense that they were involved in preventing people receiving something that may have helped. However, in research with older adults attending pain clinics comparisons with others were interpreted as distracting from the individual's pain and contributing to a feeling of wellbeing [6]. The scope of our study does not allow any concrete conclusions about this but it does introduce to the field the idea that social comparison may be an important phenomenon to explore further in research and to be aware of when interacting with older people with pain.…”

“…This is in contrast to participants' desire for the opportunity to tell their story in sufficient detail and their antipathy towards being asked to give abbreviated descriptions of their pain and its effects [22]. Indeed, participating in our research presented some with the first opportunity to talk at length about their pain, as others have found [5], [6], [15]. It was also felt that credence was not given to older individuals' knowledge and experience of their own body.…”

“…Various observations have been made about older adults with chronic pain, including a determination to get on with life [6], [7] believing that pain is an expected consequence of later life [8], [9] and, consequently, assuming that seeking help is not an option [10]; and their lack of awareness of effective treatment options [11]. Particular observations have been made about encounters between older adults with chronic pain and health professionals (HPs).…”

Perceptions of joint pain and feeling well in older people who reported being healthy: a qualitative study

“…23 Responders had developed complex and individualised ways of using physical activity to manage joint pain and get on with their everyday lives. 22 They were receptive to suggestions that help maintain independence, such as the role of exercise. Exercise advice, though, needs to draw on patients' existing ways of managing, and to reflect personal abilities, preferences, and priorities.…”

“…Not all 'exercise' was undertaken as part of self-care; much of it was conducted in order to get on with normal life, and keep up valued roles and activities, including leisure pursuits. 2,22 The wear and tear osteoarthritis model was not used as a biomechanical basis for taking decisions about exercise. Some responders invoked the model of 'use it or lose it', which, logically, is at odds with wear and tear.…”