The experience of older adults with anxiety and depression living in the community: Aging, occupation and mental wellbeing

Abstract

Introduction: As life expectancy grows so does the need for mental health services for older people. Occupational science and therapy literature demonstrates how occupation supports older adults' wellbeing, but there has been little research into the relationship between occupation and health for those with anxiety and depression. The aim of this study was to understand the occupational experience of Irish older adults with anxiety and depression so as to inform therapeutic programmes. Method: A qualitative research design with a phenomenological framework was adopted. A total of five community-dwelling people with diagnoses of anxiety and/or depression were purposively selected to participate in semi-structured interviews. The interviews were analysed using thematic analysis. Findings: The themes which emerged-'Occupation as a marker for wellness' and 'Sustaining a sense of occupational identity'support existing literature and reveal new information about interactions between occupational identity crisis and mental health. Personally meaningful occupation which connects a person to their life worlds and sense of self has the potential to consolidate recovery from anxiety and depression. Conclusion: The study contributes to knowledge on how occupation supports an older person's wellbeing and identity in the face of life changes, and has implications for occupational therapists working with older adults.

Occupational Disruption during the COVID-19 Pandemic: The Lived Experience of Community-Dwelling Older Adults

“…This heightened awareness may be related to the occupational disruption that they experienced. Previously, the inability of older adults to take part in meaningful activities was found to disrupt their sense of self, lead to thoughts about being old and dying, and compromise their wellbeing (Mulholland & Jackson, 2018). Another possible explanation is that this awareness increased in response to the ageist attitudes expressed in traditional and social media, the misrepresentation of the COVID-19 pandemic as an "older adult problem", and the social policies that imposed restrictions on older adults (Fraser et al, 2020).…”

La ocupación en la Gerontología: una perspectiva crítica del Modelo de Ocupación Humana

“…No obstante, en los últimos años, al tiempo que se producen avances en materia de teoría e intervención en Terapia Ocupacional en Geriatría y Gerontología, algunas investigaciones abordan cuestiones relativas a la ocupación y la salud en personas mayores sin patología ni dependencia psicofísica (Hwang, 2012;Mulholland y Jackson, 2018;Sanders, 2018). Uno de los estudios que a fines del siglo pasado inauguró el trabajo en esta línea es el titulado Occupation in Lifestyle Redesign: The Well Elderly Study Occupational Therapy Program (Jackson et al, 1998), el cual propuso una intervención preventiva de Terapia Ocupacional para el rediseño de rutinas en adultos mayores.…”

Mechanisms of Social Interaction and Virtual Connections as Strong Predictors of Wellbeing of Older Adults

“…Moving to a retirement community often involves a major life transition for older adults that requires psychosocial adjustment to get involved with fellow residents [ 29 ]. This transition, demanding new social behaviors and cultural adaptation, is easy when staff in the facility are ready to cooperate and support the new residents in an age-friendly manner [ 30 ]. Hence, community engagement provides an enhanced opportunity to inclusion, embracing diversity in a multicultural setting.…”