Approaching the experience of people through the process of a colostomy

The purpose of this paper is to explore the experience of people who go through the process of a colostomy.

Methodological approach of qualitative type and with a phenomenological framework, through in-depth interviews. Six women and 12 men, between 38 and 86 years of age, were interviewed before and after surgery, between 3 and 6 months after the intervention. The discourses were recorded and transcribed verbatim and analyzed following the 3 stages of Taylor and Bogdan: finding in progress, data coding and refinement of the understanding of the subject of study, and relativisation of the findings.

Colon cancer and colostomy involve changes in a person's experience of privacy, and the connotations of "stigma" that can be attached to this vital element. It has been observed that the perception of deteriorated body image does not relate to an individual's gender, but rather to their age, work situation, type of work and social and cultural context.

The reconstruction of an individual's relationship map, as a strategy for adapting to the process, is interrelated with social, cultural, and stoma management factors, and with their capacity for effective problem solving.