Indicators of preclinical disability: women's experiences of an aging body.
This paper is derived from a larger multimethod longitudinal study of women's bodily experiences and coping practices before the onset of disability. Twelve women participated in repeated performance measures, in-depth interviews of daily life and physically challenging events, and observations of daily activities conducted over 18 months. Interpretive phenomenological analysis of textual data showed that women's bodies provided multiple indicators or symptoms of preclinical disability. These indicators informed the women that their body was out of synch with their environment; conspicuous during social activities; and vulnerable to becoming dependent on others, technology, or assistive devices to accomplish daily activities. Greater attention to bodily indicators or symptoms may offer a practical method for clinicians to identify preclinical disability.
School of Nursing, Saint Louis University, St. Louis, MO 63139, USA. lorenzra@slu.edu
Rebecca Ann
RA
Lorenz
D000203:Activities of Daily Living; D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D000368:Aged; D004185:Disability Evaluation; D005260:Female; D015577:Geriatric Assessment / Q000379:methods; D006305:Health Status Indicators; D006801:Humans; D011788:Quality of Life / Q000523:psychology*; D012647:Self-Assessment; D035862:Vulnerable Populations / Q000523:psychology*; D016387:Women's Health