Loving her to the end
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.7146/qs.v9i1.143672Keywords:
Embodied caregiving, Dignity, Respect, Honour, Loving, TransformationAbstract
How can I honour my ageing loved one, caring for her with respect and dignity, thereby loving her to the end? This paper is an autoethnography of my experience providing elder care for my mother during the final six years of her life. At the conclusion of this personal narrative, I offer a reflection on the practice of embodied caregiving and perspectivalism, which prompted a transformation in me. The scope encompasses the stages of elder care, from taking on the task to the time of death of the loved one. Adult transformative learning theory informs the paper, as I progress through these steps in learning how to care for my mother. A subtext is that of ascribing great value to the elderly through the means of stepping into their world in embodied caregiving. This process of honouring my mother leads to the goal of loving her to the end.
References
Adams, T.E., Ellis, C. & Holman Jones, S. (2017). Autoethnography. In J. Matthes, C.S. Davis & R.F. Potter (Eds.), The International Encyclopedia of Communication Research Methods (pp. 1-11). https://doi.org/10.1002/9781118901731.iecrm0011
Bookman, A., & Kimbrel, D. (2011). Families and elder care in the twenty-first century. The Future of Children, 21(2), 117-140. http://www.jstor.org/stable/41289632
Cockrell, M. (2022). The power of intergenerational connection. Generations: Journal of the American Society on Aging, 46(3), 1-7. https://www.jstor.org/stable/48707871
Ellis, C., & Bochner, A. (2000). Autoethnography, personal narrative, reflexivity: Researcher as subject. In N. Denzin & Y. Lincoln (Eds.), Handbook of Qualitative Research (2nd ed., pp. 733-768). Sage.
Ellis, C., Adams, T. E., & Bochner, A. P. (2011). Autoethnography: An overview. Historical Social Research / Historische Sozialforschung, 36(4 (138)), 273-290. http://www.jstor.org/stable/23032294
Frame, J. (2012, June 4). A primer on perspectivalism. The Works of John Frame & Vern Poythress. https://frame-poythress.org/a-primer-on-perspectivalism/
Gloviczki, P. (n.d., June 18). Self and social: An interview about autoethnography. Sage Research Methods Community. Retrieved March 17, 2023, from https://researchmethodscommunity.sagepub.com/blog/self-and-social-an-interview-about-autoethnography
Holdrege, C. (2007). Transformation in adult learning. In Context, 18, (Fall, 2007). https://www.natureinstitute.org/article/craig-holdrege/transformation-in-adult-learning
Roszak, T. (2000). The aging of Aquarius. In Smith, O. J. (Ed.), Aging in America (pp. 25-31). H.W. Wilson. (Reprinted from The Nation, 1998, December 28)
Stevns, A. E. (2021). A virtue ethical approach to interpretation of the suffering other. Qualitative Studies, 6(1), 142-157. https://doi.org/10.7146/qs.v6i1.124455
Stover, B., & Lahman, M. (2021, November 29). Communicating research: Writing in autoethnography. Sage Research Methods Community. Retrieved March 17, 2023, from https://www.methodspace.com/blog/writing-in-autoethnography
Tyner-Mullings, A. R. (2022, August). Autoethnography. OER Manifold @CUNY. Retrieved February 18, 2023, from https://cuny.manifoldapp.org/read/0513b262-b109-444e-9a75-4b42de60e449/section/210e7cfa-52e3-4412-b107-d38cfb124de5
Wærness, K. (1987). A feminist perspective on the new ideology of ‘community care’ for the elderly. Acta Sociologica, 30(2), 133-150. http://www.jstor.org/stable/4194674
World Health Organization. (2022, October 1). Ageing and health. World Health Organization. https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/ageing-and-health
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright belongs to the author and Qualitative Studies
