THE EXPERIENCE OF LIVING WITH CHRONIC KIDNEY DISEASE

Abstract

Chronic kidney disease is a public health issue due to its high incidence, morbidity, mortality, and overload of health systems. It is a disease in which renal function is progressively lost. The aim of this study was to understand the experience of people living with Chronic Renal Disease who have received a kidney transplant. I used the hermeneutic-phenomenological qualitative research method proposed by Van Manen (2014). There were 11 participants with Chronic Renal Disease in this study. The main theme that emerged was the experience of living with chronic kidney disease. I grouped sub-themes as the existential lifeworld of: (a) Relationality: feeling stuck, Terminal Chronic Renal Failure and support; (b) Temporality: something unexpected, being present and not seeing it, being young and sick; (c) Corporeality: body deterioration and changes in sex life; (d) Materiality: the effects on the economic status; and (e) Spatiality: changes in life, sadness, and depression. This study represents an important tool for the development of self-care models articulated within public health policies aimed at caring for people with Chronic kidney disease.