Die invloed van 'n mastektomie op die man-vrou verhouding : 'n pastorale ondersoek

[摘要] ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Seeing that breast cancer is the most common cancer in women and that it has such a highincidence that every woman should be aware of it, time has come for the theology, andespecially for pastoral care, to provide some answers on the possible problems thataccompany the illness. Treatment of breast cancer almost always include a degree ofsurgical intervention through which part of or a whole breast, and in extreme cases eventhe underlying tissue, is being removed. This procedure, to some extent, influences awoman's experience of her physique which in turn has an effect on the intimate space ofher marriage.The mastectomy patient may experience that the operation, with all the psychologicalaffects it has, disturbs her inner life rythm and that results in her relationships also beingpressurised. The crisis of a mastectomy should be handled as a relationship crisis within amarriage, in which the husband can play an important therapeutic role. The husbandscontribution will be greatly effected by: a) His commitment to the relationship and b)The correlation between his male identity, his sexuality and his perceptions of the femalephysique.Within the crisis of mastectomy, the woman's body-image should not be separated fromher faith identity and the quality of her marriage - there exists a dynamic interactionbetween these three, which means that the handling of the crisis of a mastectomy isdirectly dependent on the quality if her loving relationship and on the way in which sheexperiences her faith. The faith factor plays an important role in the handling of thecrisis, by creating a distance between the trauma of the loss and the way in which sheexperiences her identity.Pastoral care can play a vital role in the handling of the crisis of a mastectomy by meansof guidance and support, as it proclaims the active presence of God through the marridbody of Jesus Christ. The husband of the mastectomy patient can, in his therapeutic role,be guided to be much more sensitive for the emotional needs of his wife, in regard toaspect of sexuality. This would give her the support she needs and work constructivelytowards the goal of healing.

[发布机构] Stellenbosch University