‘I accept his manhood is on life-support’: a qualitative understanding of the impact of diabetes on sexual relationships among men and women living with type 2 diabetes and their partners in South Africa
‘I accept his manhood is on life-support’: a qualitative understanding of the impact of diabetes on sexual relationships among men and women living with type 2 diabetes and their partners in South Africa
Aim: to explore the impact of diabetes on sexual relationships among men and women living with Type 2 diabetes (PLWD) and their partners in Cape Town, South Africa.
Methods: as part of a larger study developing an intervention to improve type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) self-management, we conducted in-depth individual interviews with ten PLWD and their partners without diabetes about experiences living with T2DM, between July 2020 and January 2021. We used inductive thematic analysis.
Results: both PLWD and partners felt that their sexual relationships and desires changed post-diagnosis, in ways beyond biomedical issues. Although couples’ reports on the quality of their sexual relationships were concordant, most participants had not communicated their sexual desires and concerns with each other, causing unhappiness and fears of disappointing or losing their partner. Participants felt uninformed about sexual dysfunction but had not discussed this with their health care provider, leading to increased anxiety.
Conclusion: PLWD and their partners need more informational support to increase their understanding of diabetes associated sexual dysfunction and to decrease fears and anxiety. Strengthening communication within couples on sexual issues may empower them to find solutions to problems experienced. This may improve couples’ relationships and quality of life, and indirectly result in better self-management of T2DM.
diabetes intervention, diabetes self management, qualitative research, relationships, sexual health, type 2 diabetes
van Pinxteren, Myrna
5774a7fa-e5a7-48f6-ad90-d8e044fac576
Delobelle, Peter
91213e50-0d95-4d2c-a89b-7c498ebbe476
Levitt, Naomi
17cb94e5-99f5-4800-9d61-48dcd1ace711
Smith, Kirsten
9da65772-0efa-4267-87ff-563f9757b34e
Majikela-Dlangamandla, Buyelwa
8937ca00-a708-4a5d-9218-af62253a0f80
Mcgrath, Nuala
b75c0232-24ec-443f-93a9-69e9e12dc961
November 2023
van Pinxteren, Myrna
5774a7fa-e5a7-48f6-ad90-d8e044fac576
Delobelle, Peter
91213e50-0d95-4d2c-a89b-7c498ebbe476
Levitt, Naomi
17cb94e5-99f5-4800-9d61-48dcd1ace711
Smith, Kirsten
9da65772-0efa-4267-87ff-563f9757b34e
Majikela-Dlangamandla, Buyelwa
8937ca00-a708-4a5d-9218-af62253a0f80
Mcgrath, Nuala
b75c0232-24ec-443f-93a9-69e9e12dc961
van Pinxteren, Myrna, Delobelle, Peter, Levitt, Naomi, Smith, Kirsten, Majikela-Dlangamandla, Buyelwa and Mcgrath, Nuala
(2023)
‘I accept his manhood is on life-support’: a qualitative understanding of the impact of diabetes on sexual relationships among men and women living with type 2 diabetes and their partners in South Africa.
Diabetic Medicine, 40 (11), [e15203].
(doi:10.1111/dme.15203).
Abstract
Aim: to explore the impact of diabetes on sexual relationships among men and women living with Type 2 diabetes (PLWD) and their partners in Cape Town, South Africa.
Methods: as part of a larger study developing an intervention to improve type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) self-management, we conducted in-depth individual interviews with ten PLWD and their partners without diabetes about experiences living with T2DM, between July 2020 and January 2021. We used inductive thematic analysis.
Results: both PLWD and partners felt that their sexual relationships and desires changed post-diagnosis, in ways beyond biomedical issues. Although couples’ reports on the quality of their sexual relationships were concordant, most participants had not communicated their sexual desires and concerns with each other, causing unhappiness and fears of disappointing or losing their partner. Participants felt uninformed about sexual dysfunction but had not discussed this with their health care provider, leading to increased anxiety.
Conclusion: PLWD and their partners need more informational support to increase their understanding of diabetes associated sexual dysfunction and to decrease fears and anxiety. Strengthening communication within couples on sexual issues may empower them to find solutions to problems experienced. This may improve couples’ relationships and quality of life, and indirectly result in better self-management of T2DM.
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Manuscript Resubmitted ROUND 2 FINAL CLEAN 12082023
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Accepted/In Press date: 15 August 2023
e-pub ahead of print date: 18 August 2023
Published date: November 2023
Additional Information:
Funding Information:
This work was conducted as part of the CHERISH programme, funded by an NIHR Research Professorship award (Ref: RP:2017‐08‐ST2‐008) to Prof. Nuala McGrath using aid from the UK Government to support global health research. The views expressed in this publication are those of the author(s) and not necessarily those of the NIHR or the UK government.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2023 The Authors. Diabetic Medicine published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Diabetes UK.
Keywords:
diabetes intervention, diabetes self management, qualitative research, relationships, sexual health, type 2 diabetes
Identifiers
Local EPrints ID: 481311
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/481311
ISSN: 0742-3071
PURE UUID: ead70ee3-699d-4c35-b356-749d51f7bd20
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Date deposited: 22 Aug 2023 17:02
Last modified: 18 Mar 2024 03:25
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Contributors
Author:
Myrna van Pinxteren
Author:
Peter Delobelle
Author:
Naomi Levitt
Author:
Buyelwa Majikela-Dlangamandla
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