Emotional and Physical Challenges Faced by Persons with Multiple Sclerosis in Pakistan

Abstract

The present research is a qualitative study conducted under case study research design aimed to explore the emotional and physical challenges faced by persons with multiple sclerosis in Pakistan. To explore the lived experiences of MS patients, majorly three areas were identified psychological, physiological and survival. The content analysis research design was applied for coding and to capture the essence of the research. An interview schedule was constructed especially for this research which covered areas about emotional and physical challenges of PWMS. The sample consisted of 12 Multiple Sclerosis patients including males and females between ages 16-48 years. The method of analysis used in the current study was thematic analysis as it allows summarization of experiences into a meaningful and useful account. Findings of this research included of the Multiple Sclerosis patients that complained about having similar emotional, physiological and survival issues and their overall experiences. The inductive coding used to interpret the results indicate that Multiple Sclerosis patients face emotional and physical challenges along with constant sense of survival like depression, low self-esteem, fear, social isolation, sedentary lifestyle, bladder dysfunction, fatigue, unbalanced walking, disruption in education and financial security. Respondents used various coping techniques to deal with the daily complications. Implications, limitations and suggestions for future research had also been discussed.