Experiences of women with chronic pelvic pain

Abstract

This ethnographic study describes how a group of women with chronic pelvic pain (CPP) learned to develop self-care strategies that allowed them to function in their culturally prescribed roles throughout their illnesses. The sample consisted of 12 European American and 2 African American women from 19 to 52 years of age who had experienced CPP for the previous 6 months to 12 years. Data were collected by means of interviews and participant observations in a CPP clinic. Interviews were audiotaped and transcribed verbatim onto the Ethnograph and analyzed by the constant comparative method. Women's experiences with CPP were described as a process of self-care consisting of three strategies: assessing the need for self-care, developing self-care practices, and sustaining self-care practices.