The meaning of complementary and alternative medicine practices among people with HIV in the United States

Strategies for Managing Everyday Life

Datos Bibliográficos

ID2248693
AutoresCarrie E Foote‐ardah (Indiana University – Purdue University Indianapolis, autor de correspondencia)
Año2003
Volumen25
Número5
Páginas481-500
Fecha de publicación2003-07-01
Peer ReviewedSí
Open AccessSí
TipoARTICLE
RevistaSociology of Health & Illness (JOURNAL)
Identificadores de la revistaISSN: 0141-9889 • E-ISSN: 1467-9566
EditorialWiley (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1111/1467-9566.00355
PMID14498921
OpenAlexW2127984358
IdiomaEN
Citas recibidas27
Referencias citadas27

The meanings of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) practices in the everyday lives of people with HIV in the United States were investigated. Interviews of people with HIV revealed that two out of three interviewees (N = 62) used some form of CAM over the course of their ongoing HIV infection. Management of their everyday lives as ill persons was improved to the extent that CAM meanings addressed self-regulation of treatment practices and strategies to cope with uncertainty. Four main strategies are dealt with: managing symptoms, medications and emotions; self experimenting to evaluate disease progression; gaining freedom from medical regimens; and managing AIDS stigma. It was shown that CAM practices are one way people with HIV can increase control over their illness and attempt to normalise health status. CAM practices were discussed in the context of self-regulation in relation to other illnesses

Alternative medicine · Context (archaeology · Disease · Epistemology · Everyday life · Family medicine · Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV · Meaning (existential · Pathology · Psychiatry · Psychotherapist · Stigma (botany · Complementary and Alternative Medicine Studies · Herbal Medicine Research Studies · Medicine · Phytochemistry Medicinal Plant Applications · Psychology · Gerontology