Occupational performance problems in people with depression and anxiety.

BACKGROUND: Depression and anxiety often reduce people's ability to cope with everyday occupations. There is a lack of knowledge about such problems in people of working age with depression and anxiety. AIM: To describe which problems people with depression or anxiety disorders experience when performing everyday occupations and which occupations are affected. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Data based on the Canadian Occupational Performance Measure was used in this cross-sectional study. A total of 118 participants aged 18-65 years, with depression or anxiety, were recruited from primary healthcare and general mental healthcare services. The data were analysed with descriptive statistics and directed content analysis. RESULTS: The participants rated a low level of occupational performance, and their satisfaction with performance even lower. They described a great number of problems with their everyday occupations. The most frequent problem areas concerned household management, socialization and personal care. Detailed descriptions of which type of problem they experienced during everyday occupations are included. CONCLUSIONS: This study provides knowledge of which problems people with depression and anxiety disorders experience in everyday occupations within self-care, productivity, as well as leisure. Furthermore, they rate performance and satisfaction with performance of the five occupations they find the most important to change in everyday life.

Women's lived experience of well-being in everyday life when living with a stress-related illness.

Purpose: The aim of the study was to describe how women with stress-related illness experience well-being in everyday life.Methods: The study was based on a reflective lifeworld research (RLR) approach and the methodological principles of openness, flexibility and bridling. Twelve women, aged 27-54 years, diagnosed with stress-related illness were included. Data were collected with lifeworld interviews based on photographs taken by the women relating to well-being in everyday life. The data were analysed for meaning.Results: Well-being emerged in situations where women could feel an unconditional beingness. This entails not having demands on oneself and includes some form of freedom from having to perform. The surroundings and supportive environments are important for this unconditional beingness to be present. In order to feel well-being in everyday life, the women need to balance their energy and find helpful tools that can achieve a balance in everyday life.Conclusions: Healthcare staff need to understand the importance of unconditional beingness in supportive environments for patients living with stress-related illness in order to support their health and well-being. It is also important to support patients in finding helpful tools that can aid them to achieve a balance in everyday life.

New way of working: Professionals' expectations and experiences of the Culture and Health Project for clients with psychiatric disabilities: A focus group study.

There is a need for various types of interventions when meeting needs of clients with psychiatric disabilities and complementary interventions may also influence their well-being. The Culture and Health project, based on complementary interventions with 270 clients, was created in a county in Sweden for clients with psychiatric disabilities and for professionals to carry out the interventions. The aim of this study was to investigate the professionals' expectations regarding the project and their clients' possibilities for participating, and to investigate the professionals' experiences of the project after its completion. Focus group data with a total of 30 professionals participating were collected. A qualitative content analysis revealed four categories of the professionals' expectations before entering the project: "Clients' own possibilities and limitations for their development and independence", "Professionals' possibilities for supporting the clients", "Societal prerequisites", and "Expectations of a new way of working". Furthermore, the analysis regarding professionals' experiences after working with the project revealed three categories: "Adopting the challenges", "Having ways of working that function - prerequisites and possibilities", and "Meeting the future - an ambition to continue". CONCLUSION: Working in the Culture and Health project together with the clients in group-based activities was perceived as beneficial, although challenges arose. When implementing cultural activities, support from stakeholder organisations is needed.

Work and everyday activities: experiences from two interventions addressing people with common mental disorders.

OBJECTIVE: Lengthy sick leave makes demands on work ability enhancing interventions in primary health care. Problem-based method (PBM) and cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) are interventions aimed at people with common mental disorders. This study aimed to describe how individuals experienced interventions and the impact the interventions had on the individuals' ability to work and perform other everyday activities. METHOD: Fourteen women and two men, eight each from two interventions, were interviewed. The interviews were analysed using qualitative content analysis. RESULTS: The analysis revealed one overarching theme: "Reaching safe ground or continuing to seek help". Four categories were identified: "From being passive to making one's own efforts in the rehabilitation process", "Being stuck on a treadmill or daring to change", "Evolving from routine to more aware behaviour", and "Fitting in or not fitting in with workplace situations". CONCLUSIONS: According to the participants, experiences from both PBM and CBT had a positive impact on their ability to work and perform other everyday activities in a more sustainable way. Reflecting on behaviour and achieving limiting strategies were perceived as helpful in both interventions, although varying abilities to incorporate strategies were described. In general, the results support the use of active coping-developing interventions rather than passive treatments.