Discourses on menopause--Part II: How do women talk about menopause?

Health
Lotte Hvas, Dorte Effersøe Gannik

Abstract

The aim of this article is to describe which of the different available discourses women relate to as revealed in the way they talk about menopause. We use a discourse analytic approach, which implies that meaning is ascribed to things according to how we talk about them. Twenty-four menopausal women from Denmark were interviewed. They were selected to cover a broad spectrum of Danish women with different menopausal experiences and social background factors. Seven previously identified discourses could be found in the interviews, though to varying degrees from woman to woman. Nearly all women used terms from the biomedical sphere like 'a period of decline and decay', even if they did not necessarily agree with this view. Also the existential discourse permeated most of the interviews, especially when the conversation turned to the ageing process, femininity and self-development. The way the menopause was talked about almost became kaleidoscopic when images speedily changed from the decrepit osteoporotic woman or a woman with lack of vitality and sex-appeal to a healthy and strong woman with control over her body and self. Since many women contact doctors in relation to menopause, and since the way doctors talk about menopause i...Continue Reading

References

May 1, 1980·The American Journal of Psychiatry·G L Engel
Jun 1, 1995·Family Practice·D E Gannik
Jun 1, 1997·Journal of Psychosomatic Obstetrics and Gynaecology·P A Kaufert, M Lock
Sep 27, 2002·Scandinavian Journal of Primary Health Care. Supplement·Dorte Gannik
Oct 16, 2003·Maturitas·Lotte HvasKirsten Søndergaard
Jul 17, 2004·Scandinavian Journal of Primary Health Care·Lotte HvasKirsti Malterud

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Citations

Sep 7, 2011·Social Science & Medicine·Patricia Niland, Antonia C Lyons
Jan 10, 2017·Journal of Psychosomatic Obstetrics and Gynaecology·Judith Sergeant, Rosemary Rizq
Oct 19, 2019·Journal of Psychosomatic Obstetrics and Gynaecology·Narjes Bahri, Robab Latifnejad Roudsari
Aug 23, 2019·Journal of Transcultural Nursing : Official Journal of the Transcultural Nursing Society·Diana Sher-Pin OngShefaly Shorey
Sep 25, 2019·Journal of Health Psychology·Jade Crimson Rose Da Costa

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