Effects of Illness on Women’s Relationships

Effects of Illness on Women’s Relationships

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Effects of Illness on Women’s Relationships

In addition to affecting the lives of those who are ill, illnesses may also profoundly affect the spouses or partners who care for those who are ill. Anxiety and depression may increase as caregivers adjust to new realities and expectations. On the other hand, intimacy and closeness may increase as partners solidify their relationships in the face of illness. Though every relationship is unique, there are some trends that can be seen across relationships when, for instance, in a heterosexual relationship the man is the caregiver, and alternatively when the women is the caregiver. Lesbian relationships, too, are impacted when one partner is ill, sometimes in similar patterns to heterosexual relationships, and sometimes in different ways.

To prepare for this Discussion, consider how illness might affect a life partner relationship under these different relationship configurations.

Reply 1

Social role theories provide a conceptual framework based on psychological theory that addresses the sex differences and similarities in the context of social behavior with its primary principle focusing on the division of labor and defining sex-appropriate behavior (Eagly & Wood, 2016; Moen, 1998). Two theoretical views outlined in Moen (1998) identified the physical and emotional well-being of women in both the role enhancement perspective and the role strain perspective. The author described role enhancement is the perceived importance of obtaining multiple roles to increase a heightened sense of identify whereas role strain refers to the opposite. This theory places emphasis on the lack of multiple roles and describes how having too many roles may be detrimental to a women’s well-being. Although both roles seem in opposition to each other, current research supports the existence of both theories in regards to context and change (Moen, 1998).

Understanding role theory as it relates to illness in women is important to understand coping strategies associated with gender. When transitioning to the role of caregiver when a male partner is ill, there is supporting research that suggests multiple roles do not hinder the caregivers ability and further studies documented evidence of the positive impact of multiple roles (increased ability to multi-task that decreases the time spent focusing on hopelessness and helplessness emotions) (Rozario, Morrow-Howell, & Hinterlong, 2004). In general, most of the supporting research on caregiving and role theory is centered around physical illness such as cancer, HIV, or dementia related diseases (which can be viewed as a biopsychosocial illness) yet little research is dedicated to chronic behavioral health illnesses. Gender differences related to caregiving have demonstrated little sex differences despite society’s placement of specific roles upon women (Sharma, Chakrabarti, & Grover, 2016). Traditionally, the female caregiver is seen as more loving and thoughtful because that is our “primary” role in the family, whereas the male caregiver may be seen as lacking empathy, only attending to the specific physical needs of his sick partner.

Despite these stereotypical roles, about half of Americans have one or more serious health problems, whether physical or psychological, in which they depend on another person to assist them (Ward, Schiller, & Goodman, 2014). Most research in this area has been focused on heterosexual couples, however, with the legalization of homosexual marriage, research focusing on gender and caregiver roles with a sick partner will become more widely available. A recent stud conducted by Umberson, Thomeer, Reczek, and Donnelly (2016) examined social illness construction from a same-sex spouse perspective. The researchers raised many questions regarding whether gendered experiences of illness and care are expressed differently. As in previous studies, the results of the current study suggested that same-sex females engage in reciprocal emotional support whereas same-sex males engage in limited amounts of emotional support in order to uphold autonomy and self-sufficiency (Umberson, Thomeer, Kroeger, Lodge, & Xu, 2015).

Reply 2

Women’s Health

Week 9 Main Discussion Post – Effects of Illness on Women’s Relationships

The way illness affects a romantic partnership can have significant effects on the relationship as a whole, and even on the outcomes of the illness. The level of empathy and support expressed by the partner when facing the loved one being ill is significant when it comes to psycho-social wee-being. It has been found through research that couples who are able to provide and receive support in a sensitive way can expect more positive outcomes. (Fekete, Stephens, Mickelson, & Druley., 2007).

Explanation of the Most Significant Way Illness May Affect a Heterosexual Relationship When the Male Partner is Ill

Partners of persons that are usually ill suffering just as much psychological distress as the afflicted individual, if not more (Carlson, Bultz, Speca, & St. Pierre., 2000). Yet there is evidence that women experience more distress than men when their partner is ill, partly because of societal conditioning that places women in caregiving roles, and also because of the deeply ingrained beliefs about men being perceived as mentally tougher than women (Gritz et al., 1990; Hagedoorn et al., 2008; Pitceathly and Maguire, 2003). There is also evidence that women who are caregivers experience higher levels of distress than men in the same position (Altschuler., 2015); they assume greater responsibility for household chores and the family, regardless of who is ill (for example, Gritz et al., 1990; Hagedoorn et al., 2008; Pitceathly and Maguire, 2003). Both partners tend to adjust better to the presence of a grave illness when the partner that is ill is male since women are readier to broaden the scope of the caregiving role they already usually assume (Altschuler., 2015).

Explanation of the Most Significant Way Illness May Affect a Heterosexual relationship When the Female Partner is Ill

When a female partner in a heterosexual relationship is gravely ill, there is a high risk for abandonment trough divorce or separation (Glantz, Chamberlain, Liu et al., 2009). The risk of this occurrence is much greater when the ill partner is female (Glantz, Chamberlain, Liu et al., 2009). Concurrently, partners that are separated or divorced are more likely to be hospitalized and less likely to participate in clinical trials than married counterparts, meaning that the quality of care is adversely related to marital status (Glantz, Chamberlain, Liu et al., 2009).

Men often find it difficult to communicate with their ill partner and how to behave around them. A lot of them do not have a support system to guide them in this situation (Glantz, Chamberlain, Liu et al., 2009). Many men also experience libido problems (Glantz, Chamberlain, Liu et al., 2009).

The Extent to Which These Effects May be the Same or Different for a Female Same-Sex relationship

Gay couples encounter particular dilemmas when one partner is ill (Rolland, J. S. (1994), like dealing with insurance-related issues and their partnership being recognized in the legal realm. At the same time, one study found that same-sex couples experience very similar constructs when it comes to facing the illness of a partner compared to heterosexual couples, but they are able to more deeply understand the nuances of the situation, therefore experiencing less illness-related psychological distress and marital disagreements (Umberson, Thomeer, Reczek, & Donnelly,. 2016), possibly due to a more fluid gender-role experience.

 

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