hig.sePublications
Change search
CiteExportLink to record
Permanent link

Direct link
Cite
Citation style
  • apa
  • harvard-cite-them-right
  • ieee
  • modern-language-association-8th-edition
  • vancouver
  • Other style
More styles
Language
  • sv-SE
  • en-GB
  • en-US
  • fi-FI
  • nn-NO
  • nn-NB
  • de-DE
  • Other locale
More languages
Output format
  • html
  • text
  • asciidoc
  • rtf
The male partners' experiences of the intimate relationships after a first myocardial infarction
Örebro University Hospital, Department of Cardiology. (The SAMMI-study group)
University of Gävle, Faculty of Health and Occupational Studies, Department of Health and Caring Sciences, Nursing science. Department of Public Health and Caring Sciences, Section of Caring Sciences, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden. (The SAMMI-study group)ORCID iD: 0000-0002-1864-5777
School of Health Sciences, Jönköping University; Linnaeus University, Växjö, Sweden. (The SAMMI-study group)
School of Health Sciences, Jönköping University; County Hospital Ryhov, Jönkoping, Sweden. (The SAMMI-study group)
Show others and affiliations
2011 (English)In: European Journal of Cardiovascular Nursing, ISSN 1474-5151, E-ISSN 1873-1953, Vol. 10, no 2, p. 108-114Article in journal (Refereed) Published
Abstract [en]

Background: Stress in the intimate relationship is found to worsen the prognosis in women suffering from myocardial infarction (MI). Little is known about how male spouses experience the intimate relationship.

Aim: This study aimed to explore and describe the experience of men’s intimate relationships in connection to and after their female partner’s first MI.

Methods: An explorative and qualitative design was used. Interviews were conducted with 16 men having a partner who the year before had suffered a first MI. The data were analysed with qualitative content analysis.

Results: Three themes emerged: masculine image challenged; life takes another direction; and life remains unchanged. The men were forced to deal with an altered image of themselves as men, and as sexual beings. They were hesitant to approach their spouse in the same way as before the MI because they viewed her to be more fragile. The event also caused them to consider their own lifestyle, changing towards healthier dietary and exercise habits.

Conclusions: After their spouse’s MI, men experienced a challenge to their masculine image. They viewed their spouse as being more fragile, which led the men to be gentler in sexual intimacy and more hesitant to invite sexual activity. This knowledge about how male spouses experience the intimate relationship could be helpful for health personnel in hospitals and primary care when they interact with couples where the woman suffers from cardiac disease or other chronic disorders.

Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
2011. Vol. 10, no 2, p. 108-114
Keywords [en]
Spouses, Myocardial infarction, Content analysis, Relationship, Sexuality, Male
National Category
Nursing
Research subject
Health-Promoting Work
Identifiers
URN: urn:nbn:se:hig:diva-7706DOI: 10.1016/j.ejcnurse.2010.05.003ISI: 000291774700006PubMedID: 20573549Scopus ID: 2-s2.0-79955945006OAI: oai:DiVA.org:hig-7706DiVA, id: diva2:354960
Projects
SAMMIAvailable from: 2010-10-05 Created: 2010-10-05 Last updated: 2022-09-21Bibliographically approved

Open Access in DiVA

No full text in DiVA

Other links

Publisher's full textPubMedScopus

Authority records

Kristofferzon, Marja-Leena

Search in DiVA

By author/editor
Kristofferzon, Marja-Leena
By organisation
Nursing science
In the same journal
European Journal of Cardiovascular Nursing
Nursing

Search outside of DiVA

GoogleGoogle Scholar

doi
pubmed
urn-nbn

Altmetric score

doi
pubmed
urn-nbn
Total: 1404 hits
CiteExportLink to record
Permanent link

Direct link
Cite
Citation style
  • apa
  • harvard-cite-them-right
  • ieee
  • modern-language-association-8th-edition
  • vancouver
  • Other style
More styles
Language
  • sv-SE
  • en-GB
  • en-US
  • fi-FI
  • nn-NO
  • nn-NB
  • de-DE
  • Other locale
More languages
Output format
  • html
  • text
  • asciidoc
  • rtf