Despondency Among HIV-Positive Older Men and Women in Uganda

Abstract

Forty people over 60 years of age took part in longitudinal research over the course of a year on the impact of the HIV epidemic in southern Uganda. In this paper we focus mainly on the data from 26 of the 40 who were HIV-positive. While we observed that feelings of depression were frequently experienced by many of the people in our study, the state of ‘being depressed’ was not constant. Participants regularly expressed economic frustration (because of a lack of money to buy food and other commodities including sugar and soap); medical problems (including those related to HIV) as well as old age, the burden of dependents (including concerns about school fees for grandchildren), feelings of sadness and isolation, and a lack of support from others, as well as stigma, whether real or perceived. However, while worries, sorrow and despondent thoughts were reported in many of the interviews across the study, moods fluctuated moving from happiness and hope, to sadness and despair, from month to month. Concerns regarding the psychological wellbeing amongst older people, including those living with HIV and older carers in Uganda deserve greater attention.

Experiences of HIV-related stigma among HIV-positive older persons in Uganda – a mixed methods analysis

“…Similarly, perceptions about stigma do not necessarily disappear with time (Dowshen, Binns & Garofalo 2009) Moods fluctuated moving from happiness and hope to worry, sadness and despair over the months depending on the prevailing circumstances. This finding is consistent with previous studies on despondency and stigma (Wright, Zalwango, Seeley, Mugisha & Scholten 2012) where respondents regularly expressed frustration over economic constraints (due to lack of money to meet basic needs), medical problems including those related to HIV and old age, concerns about providing care for children and grandchildren, feelings of sadness and isolation, and lack of support from others as factors associated with stigma. One explanation for the changes in behaviour and opinions about stigma may be: fluctuations in health and support from others, feelings of isolation, food availability, confidence or despondency, the respondents' changing attitudes towards HIV/AIDS as well as a sense of empowerment through intolerance of stigma.…”

‘I was thinking too much’: experiences ofHIV‐positive adults with common mental disorders and poor adherence to antiretroviral therapy in Zimbabwe

“…Second, information about the sources of hope for this population, such as family relationships, is useful for motivating patients to engage with care and break the negative depressive cycle. This underscores the importance of disclosure and involvement of family members in the delivery of mental health care and promotion of adherence, as has been established in previous research . Third, the emphasis on privacy in participants’ responses highlights the need for one‐on‐one interactions with HCWs, over group counselling interventions.…”

Intergenerational care for and by children: Examining reciprocity through focus group interviews with older adults in rural Uganda

“…Further, our FGD data is limited to older persons' views on care. Many older persons in rural Uganda complain about young people disrespecting elders (Seeley 2013;Wright et al 2012); others brag about the care they give to grandchildren and the assistance they receive in return (Rutakumwa et al 2015;Schatz et al 2017). Examining how well these claims fit with children's views of these relationships and exchanges is necessary to have the full story.…”