Kohl, Gianna;
Koh, Wei Qi;
Scior, Katrina;
Charlesworth, Georgina;
(2024)
"It's just getting the word out there": Self-disclosure by people with young-onset dementia.
PLoS ONE
, 19
(9)
, Article e0310983. 10.1371/journal.pone.0310983.
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Abstract
Background: Sharing a dementia diagnosis with others is a prerequisite to accessing important support for social, cognitive, and physical activity. However, due to the stigma associated with dementia, individuals may be hesitant to disclose their diagnosis. Despite the importance of this issue, there is limited research on personal experiences with sharing one’s diagnosis. This study explored how people with young-onset dementia disclose their diagnosis to other people, also known as self-disclosure, and how time affects self-disclosure. Methods: We conducted an exploratory qualitative study, using semi-structured interviews with nine people with young-onset dementia living in the United Kingdom (UK). A narrative approach to analysis was applied, focusing on understanding the core narratives, themes, tone, and imagery of each participant’s narratives as well as providing a cross-case analysis to identify patterns across narratives. Results: Participants openly disclosed their diagnosis, accepting it as an illness that did not define their identity. Several were met with stigmatizing reactions, which affected their levels of openness, and a lack of understanding, which caused shrinking social networks for some. Peer support groups, advocacy activities, and strategic concealment were used to support self-disclosure. Conclusion: This study provides a holistic understanding of people with young-onset dementia’s experiences with self-disclosure and how these evolved. Policies should prioritize the creation of dementia-friendly communities, while recommendations for practice include integrating empowerment interventions and peer support into post-diagnostic support. These efforts will support individuals in their self-disclosure journey, promote social engagement and reduce stigma.
| Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Title: | "It's just getting the word out there": Self-disclosure by people with young-onset dementia |
| Location: | United States |
| Open access status: | An open access version is available from UCL Discovery |
| DOI: | 10.1371/journal.pone.0310983 |
| Publisher version: | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0310983 |
| Language: | English |
| Additional information: | Copyright: © 2024 Kohl et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited. |
| Keywords: | Science & Technology, Multidisciplinary Sciences, Science & Technology - Other Topics, STIGMA, EXPERIENCES, DIAGNOSIS, TELL, CONCEALMENT, IMPACT, IM |
| UCL classification: | UCL UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Brain Sciences UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Brain Sciences > Div of Psychology and Lang Sciences UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Brain Sciences > Div of Psychology and Lang Sciences > Clinical, Edu and Hlth Psychology UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Population Health Sciences > Institute of Epidemiology and Health > Primary Care and Population Health |
| URI: | https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10212838 |
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