Table 1 Categorization of qualitative data
Category of suffering | Indications for assigning category |
|---|---|
Physical | Medical morbidity, the physical symptom itself, physical symptoms which result in physical experienced suffering |
Loss of meaning | Loss of: identity, capacity of self-fulfillment, communication, social role, social interaction, intimacy |
Loss of autonomy | Suffering acknowledged to be caused by: loss of autonomous functioning or occurrence of dependency (presence itself of loss of autonomy or of dependency is not sufficient to assign the category) |
Loss of dignity | Socially embarrassing symptoms, shame, body image concerns, not being taken seriously, worthlessness |
Loss of sexual role | Loss of capability of sexual functioning; loss of sexual role |
Fear of future suffering | Fear caused by awareness of potential suffering related to progress of disease |
Anxiety | Anxiety |
Death anxiety | Anxiety related to awareness of the process of dying and what will go along with that, and anxiety related to the actual dying process |
Depressiveness | Suffering caused by the presence of depressive thoughts |
Worrying | Negative thoughts which cannot be turned off |
Feeling tensed | Feeling tensed in mind or body |
Hopelessness | Loss of possibility of meaning |
Pointlessness | Total loss of meaning; nothing left |