Well-being, sense of coherence, and burnout in stroke victims and spouses during the first few months after stroke.

Ten stroke victims, who had recently suffered their first manifest stroke with lasting neurological symptoms, participated, together with their spouses, in a study aimed at elucidating the well-being, sense of coherence (SOC), and burnout during the first few months after discharge. The stroke victims had no substantial speech disturbances, and showed no evidence of significant cognitive impairment, signifying they were mildly to moderately impaired by their stroke. All subjects were investigated at 1 and 3 months after homecoming. The methods used in this study were open-ended interviews with all research participants, performed at two different appointments, and three self-reporting questionnaires: the well-being measure (WM), the SOC scale, and the burnout measure (BM). The instruments suit each other well, broaden the picture of living with stroke and give an attuned comprehensive understanding. The most striking finding was the substantial differences in the results, both regarding the stroke victims and their spouses, clearly indicating the limited value current generalizations have. The results also pointed to considerable distress both in stroke victims and spouses, although individuals with a weak SOC clearly displayed more difficulties in coping with the situation and risk of burnout, than did those with a strong SOC.