Diabetic patients facing long-term complications: coping with uncertainty

A major problem of diabetes mellitus lies in its complications. Fourteen Type 1 diabetic patients with severe long-term complications were interviewed on two occasions with the aim of gaining a deeper understanding of their coping strategies. The study has a qualitative design and a grounded theory approach was used. The data-based categories 'Coming to terms', 'Keeping going' and 'Making sense' serve as a framework for the presentation of the substantive issues raised by the respondents. It was found that the problem of uncertainty featured prominently.