Group Therapy another Solution to the Questions of Lupus

There are so many questions when a woman is first diagnosed with lupus that they often look around to find resources to deal with these questions and when they do it is often among other like affected women. This is not to say that men do not look for answers, they may, but with nine out of ten persons affected with lupus being women they are more likely to be the ones doing the looking. One solution to finding the answers they crave is attending group therapy sessions. This gives them the opportunity to meet other women just like them, dealing with the same fears the same questions and hopefully the same triumphs.

A recent study of women attending group therapy had some very interesting results. The program they attended went on for twelve weeks. They were sessions called supportive-expressive therapy. It is designed to give the patients support, allow them to express s their fears and hopes and to avail each of them of the wisdom of the others. After the initial twelve weeks the women returned to meet once a month for three months.

The areas that were discussed most often could be broken down to three subjects. They were relationships, self-expression and life. Relationship concerns for women included family, both immediate and other, friendships and relationships with co-workers. Self-expression was more about intimacy. Many of the women were concerned about their sex lives. How would their partners deal with them now that they had been diagnosed and if they were alone would they ever find a partner? The final one was general life issues; work and would the disease interfere with it. They wanted to know how active they could be. Could they still exercise, go to the gym or swim? They worried about their finances; would they be unduly tapped because of the lupus?

There were so many worries because so few of the women knew what was going to happen to them now that they had been told they had lupus. They worried about the prospects of having children if they had not already. Or having another if they had kids. The anxiety was very high with many of the women suffering from bouts of depression and others simply feeling very frustrated. These feelings can hinder the ability to heal and react well to medications.

These sessions were closely monitored and the outcomes were very good. The women who came to talk were able to exchange emotional support for one another. They were able to give to the others while still being able to take away from the sessions the support given to them. Not only did the feeling that someone cared and listened help them, but knowing there were others like them, did as well. The first to areas of concern seemed to be the best ones handled during the sessions. The sessions continued with the women still meeting monthly. Although group therapy is not the solution for everyone it seems to be a good place to look into if coping with lupus is making it harder to get well.