A person with borderline personality disorder, which is a mental illness, can be described as emotionally instable. As a relative of a person with borderline personality disorder one often feels a sense of despair, anxiety and fear. The essay’s purpose was to get an understanding of what it means to be a relative of a person with borderline personality disorder. We wanted to see the relative’s relationship from two perspectives, both from the relative’s perspective and from the professional’s perspective. The essay was a qualitative study with a phenomenological approach. The results were structured into five themes. These were: Growing up, To be diagnosed, Life with borderline, The present, and The future. The results were analyzed against coping. A qualitative analysis was conducted. The results showed that life as a relative of a person with borderline personality disorder in many cases can be stressful. For example, they adapted their own life very much. Blame from the healthcare system and from the surrounding environment seemed to be a prominent feature of the family. / En person med borderline personlighetsstörning, som är en psykisk sjukdom, kan beskrivas som emotionell instabil. Som anhörig till en person med borderline personlighetsstörning kan man känna oro, rädsla och förtvivlan. Uppsatsens syfte var att få förståelse för hur det är att vara anhörig till en person med borderline personlighetsstörning. Anhörigskapet studeras från två perspektiv: dels från anhörigas och dels från professionellas. Uppsatsen var en kvalitativ studie och hade en fenomenologisk ansats. Resultatet strukturerades i fem teman: Uppväxt, Att få diagnosen, Livet med borderline, Nutid och Framtid. Resultatet analyserades mot copingbegreppet. En kvalitativ analys genomfördes. Resultatet visade att livet som anhörig till en person med borderline personlighetsstörning i många fall kan vara påfrestande då de till exempel fick anpassa sitt eget liv. Skuldbeläggande från sjukvården och från omgivningen verkade vara en återkommande erfarenhet.

MA (Psychology) / Department of Psychology / Background: Given that there is 57.7 million HIV-diagnosed people living in South Africa and the government has established the largest public antiretroviral programme in the whole world but only 53% are adhering. Adherence remains a challenge, due to presence of mental health issues among HIV diagnosed. Aim: The aim of this study was to investigate adherence to antiretroviral therapy and mental health of HIV-diagnosed patients in Vhembe District, Limpopo Province. Methods: This was a mixed method study using a combination of quantitative and qualitative research approaches. In the quantitative approach, triangulation was utilised in the form of a questionnaire and patients records. Simple random sampling was used to select 134, descriptive analysis using SPSS version 25. For the qualitative approach, a phenomenological research designs was considered and convenience sampling was used to select fifteen participants (15). Data was collected using semi-structured interview; responses were analysed using a computer-aided program called, ATLAS ti. Results: The self-report of adherence was 94.8 %, objectively 39.6% of CD4 count <200c/mm3 at baseline and 34.3% CD4 count after six months was found. 16.5% of females and 2% of males defaulted treatment and 14.9% of missed medical appointments 1-6 times. This study also revealed the mental health issues that HIV-diagnosed patients are struggling with after the diagnosis include the stages of grief, stress, depression, anxiety, mistrust, shame, stigma and discrimination. Recommendation: Effective strategies need to be enhanced and tailor made in effort to encourage patients to take ART diligently. The healthcare providers, community members and the government should be made aware of mental health issues. / NRF

BACKGROUND: Clinical evidence shows that diabetes may provoke uncontrolled blood pressure (BP) in hypertensive patients. However, racial differences in the associations of diabetes with uncontrolled BP outcomes among diagnosed hypertensive patients have not been evaluated. METHODS: A total of 6,134 diagnosed hypertensive subjects aged ≥ 20 years were collected from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 1999-2008 with a stratified multistage design. Odds ratios (ORs) and relative ORs of uncontrolled BP and effect differences in continuous BP for diabetes over race/ethnicity were derived using weighted logistic regression and linear regression models. RESULTS: Compared with participants who did not have diabetes, non-Hispanic black participants with diabetes had a 138% higher chance of having uncontrolled BP, Mexican participants with diabetes had a 60% higher chance of having uncontrolled BP, and non-Hispanic white participants with diabetes had a 161% higher chances of having uncontrolled BP. The association of diabetes with uncontrolled BP was lower in Mexican Americans than in non-Hispanic blacks and whites (Mexican Americans vs. non-Hispanic blacks: relative OR = 0.55, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 0.37-0.82; Mexican Americans vs. non-Hispanic whites: relative OR = 0.53, 95% CI = 0.35-0.80) and the association of diabetes with isolated uncontrolled systolic BP was lower in Mexican Americans than in non-Hispanic whites (Mexican Americans vs. non-Hispanic whites: relative OR = 0.62, 95% CI = 0.40-0.96). Mexican Americans have a stronger association of diabetes with decreased systolic BP and diastolic BP than non-Hispanic whites, and a stronger association of diabetes with decreased diastolic BP than non-Hispanic blacks. CONCLUSIONS: The association of diabetes with uncontrolled BP outcomes is lower despite higher prevalence of diabetes in Mexican Americans than in non-Hispanic whites. The stronger association of diabetes with BP outcomes in whites should be of clinical concern, considering they account for the majority of the hypertensive population in the United States.