title: Women's experiences with vaginal pessary use.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Women's experiences with vaginal pessary use.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  This paper is a report of a study of the lived experiences of women using vaginal pessaries for the treatment of urinary incontinence (UI) and/or pelvic organ prolapse.
  
  
  BACKGROUND
  The use of a vaginal pessary offers a non-surgical treatment option to provide physical support to the bladder and internal organs. As the literature asserts, a woman's choice to use a pessary is very individual and involves not only physical, but also psychological and emotional considerations.
  
  
  METHODS
  Narrative inquiry was used to conduct face-to-face semi-structured interviews in 2007 with 11 postmenopausal women who accessed services from a Urogynecology Clinic in Eastern Canada.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The women's stories revealed that living with a pessary is a life-changing experience and an ongoing learning process. The women's comfort level and confidence in caring for the device figured prominently in their experiences. Psychosocial support provided by the clinic nurses also played a primary role in the women's experiences.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Women and healthcare professionals need to be aware of the personal isolation and embarrassment, and social and cultural implications that urinary incontinence may cause as well as the subjective experiences of using a pessary. With appropriate support, vaginal pessaries can provide women with the freedom to lead active, engaged and social lives.
authors.affiliation: Women's Health, IWK Health Centre, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada.
authors.forename: Sandra
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Storey
authors.forename: Megan
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Aston
authors.forename: Sheri
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Price
authors.forename: Linda
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Irving
authors.forename: Erin
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Hemmens
mesh_terms: D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D002170:Canada; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008016:Life Change Events; D056887:Pelvic Organ Prolapse / Q000523:psychology* / Q000628:therapy; D010570:Pessaries; D036301:Qualitative Research; D011788:Quality of Life; D012944:Social Support; D013315:Stress, Psychological; D014549:Urinary Incontinence / Q000523:psychology* / Q000628:therapy