Methods of coping used by mastectomized women to deal with stress <b>[Abstract in English]</b>

Abstract

Aims: This study aimed to identify types of coping used by mastectomized women to deal with stress. Methods: A qualitative, descriptive research was conducted, in which the gathering of the data was done through interviews. Six women, members of a support group associated to a hospital in the northwest of Rio Grande do Sul, took part in the study. Results: The analytical category “stress in mastectomized women: mechanisms of coping” emerged from the analysis of the data. The strategies used by the women to deal with the stress were the family support, participating in the group, and the help of health professionals, which consists in coping of perceived social support. Conclusions: The results made possible to understand how women deal with the suffering caused by the disease, considering that mastectomy is a process that involve physical, psychological and social changes in the woman and her family.