Meanings of being received and met by others as experienced by women with MS

Malin Olsson1, Lisa Skär, Siv Söderberg

  • 1Department of Health Science, Division of Nursing, Luleå University of Technology, Luleå, Sweden.

In order to elucidate meanings of being received and met by others as experienced by women with multiple sclerosis (MS) we conducted a qualitative inquiry. We interviewed 15 women with MS and analysed the interviews with a phenomenological hermeneutic interpretation. The findings were presented in two themes: experiencing oneself as a valuable person and experiencing oneself as diminished. Meanings of being received and met by others, as experienced by women with MS, can be understood as containing two dimensions where treatment from others can mean recognising oneself through confirmation, as well as being ignored due to missing togetherness with others.

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