Health History Assignment Part 3

Title page

Health history

Self-esteem

Argentina Carrazana has suffered from different medical issues that affected her self-esteem. She was diagnosed with Poliomyelitis when she was 13 months old. When she was 10 years old, she had surgery performed in both legs to help her walk better. She was also diagnosed with hypertension at her 20s. The medical issues endured by the patient depicts that she needs a strong value-belief system.

The patient is capable of managing her medical expenses because her daughter is supporting her. The patient is influenced by religious beliefs and considers if certain treatments are allowed in her religion. She is a Roman Catholic and her medication decisions are influenced by Catholicism.

Activity/ exercise

The patient explains that she spends most of her days at home and hardly goes out due to her illness. She doesn't follow any proper routine for exercise and face difficulty in walking due to swollen legs. She avoids lifting heavy objects because she feels pain in her legs. Before the diagnosis of cancer, she used to go for a thirty minutes walk daily. However, the illness has deprived her of the energy and she is unable to engage herself in physical activity. Most of the time she is on her bed or lying on the sofa, watching TV.

Sleep/ rest

The patient has complained about her sleep because she is anxious about her health. She takes light sleep and naps in the morning but encounters sleep problems at night. She cannot sleep for a continuous 4 hours and wake up after every hour. She also complained about insomnia as she couldn’t sleep at many nights during the past month. To sleep comfortably she uses medical aid including sleeping pills and tranquillizers. Her anxiousness affects the quality of sleep and she feels restless in mornings. The assessment of sleep-wake patterns depicts that the patient is facing the issue of sleeplessness. She also faces difficulty to wake up in the morning and complaints about energy deficiency.

Nutrition/ elimination

The patient is depending on her daughter and son-in-law who are taking care of her. The finances for the food are not adequate because they are not financially stable. The patient doesn't take any specific diet due to the financial issues. She takes vegetables, milk and soups each day. Her daughter cooks the food for her that contains low-sodium. The daughter is aware of her medical history and prefers to cook in vegetable oil. She only gets to eat meat twice in a week and soups are made from vegetables and beans.

The patient takes black tea three times a day. Her daughter is aware of the side effects of excessive black tea but the patient is unable to control her urge for tea. The daughter also complained about her mother eating snacks at nighttime when she is unable to sleep. Her daughter is a housewife and present at her mealtimes. The overall assessment of the nutrition patterns depicts that the patient is not following a healthy diet plan due to the financial constraints of her supporting daughter. The diet she consumes daily is not adequate for providing her required nutrition value. Similarly eating snacks and taking black tea indicates unhealthy eating habits.

Interpersonal relationship/ resources

The patient explained that she has a good relationship with her daughter and son-in-law. She doesn't have many friends or relative to interact with so she spends most of her time in the home with her daughter. Before her diagnosis of cancer, she used to meet her friends at clubs and parks. Now she is confined to the small home and hardly meet any of her friends. She spends most of her time in isolation in her room.

Spiritual resources

The patient has a firm belief in spirituality and she is a Roman Catholic. She believes that there is a strong relationship between spirituality and health. She also emphasizes on identifying the role of spiritual values in her treatment. There is a strong connection between her beliefs and wellbeing. She also believes that by improving her relationship with God she can attain inner peace. Some spiritual ways adopted by the patient for dealing with her illness include singing devotional songs and reading books CITATION Hea152 \l 1033 (Jim, et al., 2015). Her talking with God in isolation gives her the strength to fight with her disease. She doesn't blame anyone for her condition because according to her it is the decision of God. The medical history reveals that the patient has always relied on spiritual values for preparing herself for the surgeries and medical treatments.

Coping and stress management

The interview reveals that the patient adopted different ways of managing her stress. Her illness has been the central cause of her stress so she learned to adopt various techniques for coping with it. She explains that she spends most of her time alone to build her communication with God. This gives her the courage to fight her illness. She also performs meditation by concentrating on positive things CITATION Kat133 \l 1033 (Cieślak, Pawlukiewicz, Dorota Gołąb, Kuśnierkiewicz, & Kleka, 2013). the patient has also managed to cope with stress by reading inspiring books and accepting her disease The strategies used by the patient have allowed her to gain inner peace and calmness. However, the level of stress has increased in the past month that caused insomnia and sleep-wake issues.

References

BIBLIOGRAPHY Cieślak, K., Pawlukiewicz, M., Dorota Gołąb, a. M., Kuśnierkiewicz, M., & Kleka, P. (2013). Styles of coping with the stress of cancer in patients treated with radiotherapy and expectations towards medical staff – Practical implications. Rep Pract Oncol Radiother, 18 (2), 61–66.

Jim, H. S., Pustejovsky, J., Crystal L. Park, P. S., Fitchett, G., Thomas V. Merluzzi, Alexis R. Munoz, M. L., et al. (2015). Religion, Spirituality, and Physical Health in Cancer Patients: A Meta-Analysis. Cancer, 12 (31), 3760–3768.