Aspects of well-being when struggling with obesity

ABSTRACT

Purpose: We aimed to gain deeper insight into how people struggling with obesity handle their life situation by addressing how well-being might unfold. For many people, obesity becomes a lifelong condition characterized by repeated weight fluctuations while their weight increases gradually. From an existential perspective, constantly waiting for weight loss can cause an experience of not reaching one’s full potential. How people with obesity experience well-being, within their perceived limitations, is less reflected in previous research.

Methods: We established a qualitative study using in-depth interviews with seven men and 14 women with obesity (body mass index ³35 kg/m²) aged 18–59 years. The study had an exploratory design including a phenomenological–hermeneutic perspective, with a lifeworld approach.

Results: Three themes describing aspects of well-being were developed: coming to terms with the body, restoring the broken relational balance and reorienting the pivot in life. The thematic findings were abstracted into a main theme: striving to make living bearable. The movement towards well-being can be seen as a struggle towards an experience of balance to make bearable living.

Conclusions: We suggest that well-being as a dialectic between vulnerability and freedom might become a health-facilitating experience for people struggling with obesity.

KEYWORDS:

• Obesity
• phenomenology
• well-being
• health
• lifeworld
• lived experiences
• existential experiences

Acknowledgments

We are grateful to our participants who willingly shared their experiences through the interviews. We also thank the professionals in the health-promoting programmes for recruitment and facilitation.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Funding

There has been no contribution to this study as a result of financial or personal relationships with other people or organizations.

Notes on contributors

Britt Marit Haga

Britt Marit Haga is a PhD candidate in Health Science at the Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Stavanger, Norway. Her ongoing PhD - study is called: “Existential experiences when living with obesity”.

Bodil Furnes

Bodil Furnes is professor in Nursing Science at the Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Stavanger, Norway. Her research topics includes therapeutic writing in bereavement care, therapeutic writing in care management, existential experiences related to obesity and cancer treatment care.

Elin Dysvik

Elin Dysvik is professor emerita in Nursing Science at the Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Stavanger, Norway. She is a clinical specialist in Anesthetic nursing and Operation room nursing. Her research topics includes chronic pain management, quality of life, cognitive therapy, therapeutic writing and existential experiences related to obesity and cancer treatment care.

Venke Ueland

Venke Ueland is a PhD from Department of Caring Science Åbo Akademi University, Vasa/Associate professor at Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Stavanger, Norway. Her research topics includes the Life Phenomenon longing, existential experiences related to obesity and cancer treatment care.