Diabetes är en kronisk sjukdom som klassas som en av vår tids folksjukdomar. Diabetes gör att sockerhalten i blodet är för hög då kroppens förmåga att ta hand om socker inte längre   fungerar. Personer med diabetes är därmed i behov av att själva ha kontroll över sin blodsockernivå genom egenvård, utan inverkan från hälso- och sjukvården. Dagligen används olika sociala medier inom exempelvis underhållning och utbildning men behovet finns även för människor att skaffa sig information, stöd och rådgivning inom hälsa. Syftet med detta arbete är att undersöka möjligheten att hjälpa personer hitta kommunikationspartners via sociala media inom hälsa i liknande situation och förhållanden samt identifiera de problem som uppstår när människor delar med sig av sin hälsa på sociala medier och att skapa en internettjänst som föreslår en eventuell lösning på problemet. Genom tillämpning av teori från ämnena diabetes, kommunikation och social media samt kvalitativa intervjuer och enkätundersökning skapades en prototyp som sedan användartestades av diabetiker. Prototypen gör det möjligt att genom demografisk data och data från diabetikers egenvård göra sökningar efter användare i liknande situation. Resultatet ger en inblick i ett alternativt sätt av designa social media inom hälsa för användare som delar data med varandra. / Diabetes is a chronic disease that is classified as one of today's major diseases. Diabetes means that the blood sugar level is too high as the body’s ability to take care of~sugar is no longer functional. People with diabetes are therefore in need of exerting control over their blood sugar levels through self-care without the influence of health services. Social media in fields such as entertainment and education are used on a daily basis, but there is also a need for people to acquire information, support and counseling in health. The aim of this thesis is to explore the possibility of helping people to find communication partners being in similar situations and having the same conditions via health-related social media. Furthermore, the aim is to identify problems that arise when people share their health information on social media and creating an Internet service that proposes a possible solution for these problems. By applying theory of diabetic subjects, communication and social media as well as qualitative interviews and surveys a prototype was created which was then evaluated through user tests by diabetics. The prototype makes it possible to search for users in a similar situation through demographic data and data from diabetic self-care. The results give an insight into alternative ways of designing social media in health for users who share data with each other.

Individuals’ self-management styles are crucial for how they manage to live with illness. Commonly investigated factors include social support, self-efficacy, health beliefs, and demographics. There is a gap in the literature with regard to in-depth studies of how those factors actually influence an individual’s self-management.   The aim of this thesis was to investigate the underlying mechanisms of self-management from the perspective of individuals living with chronic illness.   Interviews were conducted with 47 individuals with various chronic illnesses, some of them repeatedly over two and a half years (a total of 107 interviews). The material was analysed with; constructive grounded theory, content analysis, phenomenography, and interpretive description.   The Self-management Support Model identified aspects that influenced participants’ self-management: economic and social situation, social support, views and perspectives on illness, attribution of responsibility, and ability to integrate self-management into an overall life situation. For example, individuals with a life-oriented or disease-oriented perspective on illness prioritized different aspects of self-management. People who attributed internal responsibility performed a more complex self-management regimen than individuals who attributed external responsibility. In conclusion, individuals who were creative and resourceful had a better chance of tailoring a self-management regimen that suited them well. People in more disadvantaged positions (e.g., financial strain, limited support, or severe intrusive illness) experienced difficulty in finding a method of self-management that fit their life situation.   These findings can inspire healthcare providers to initiate a reflective dialogue about self-management with their patients. / Exploring individuals’ conceptions as a way to understand self-management among people living with long term medical conditions