Level of Stress, Coping, and Self-Acceptance among Patients with Systemic Lupus Erythematosus

Abstract

Background: Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE) is an autoimmune disease accompanied by an invasion of tissues in most of the body organs and causes permanent inflammations and system failure. This chronic disease can lead to psychological problems such as stress and negative coping as well as difficulty to accept the disease process. Aim of the study: This study aimed to assess the level of stress, coping, and self-acceptance among patients with systemic lupus erythematosus. Setting: The study was conducted at Urology and Nephrology Center (UNC) which is affiliated to Mansoura university hospitals. Subjects: This study comprised a Convenience sample, with a total number of 200 patients with SLE. Tools: Four tools were used tool I: Patient’s sociodemographic characteristics & health assessment. Tool II: Patient stress questionnaire, tool III: Coping strategies questionnaire, and tool IV: Self-acceptance scale. Results: The study results revealed that about half of the49.5% of the studied patients had moderate levels of stress followed by mild stress 34%which was one-third, more than half 55%of the studied patients had a low ability to cope with the disease process. Furthermore, about more than half56.5% of them had a low level of self-acceptance followed by less than one-third among27.5% of them with a moderate level of self-acceptance. There is a statistically significant negative correlation between patients’ stress with their coping patterns and their self-acceptance (significant P Value =0.001). Conclusion: This study revealed that the studied patients with SLE suffered from a moderate level of stress, had low abilities to cope with the disease and low levels of self-acceptance. Recommendation: Continuous psycho-educational programs for patients with systemic lupus erythematosus in order to improve their psychological health, coping, and their quality of life.