Suspended Life Pattern: A Qualitative Study on Personal Life Among Family Caregivers of Hemodialysis Patients in Iran

Purpose To determine the personal life of family caregivers of patients undergoing hemodialysis. Methodology In this qualitative study, individual semistructured interviews were carried out with 19 caregivers of hemodialysis patients. All interviews were recorded, typed, and imported into the Open Code Software. The Graneheim and Lundman's content analysis approach was used for the analysis. Findings The theme of this study was suspended life pattern that was extracted from two categories of “Imbalance between caregiving and life” and “ambiguity in life status.” The category of “Imbalance between caregiving and life” included some subcategories including compulsive compliance, suspension, and deferral of roles, conflicts between leisure time and caregiving and caregivers' time limits. Moreover, the category “ambiguity in life” was extracted from two subcategories of fear and hope and life satisfaction depending on care recipients' condition. Conclusion Caring for hemodialysis patients leads to instability and ambiguity in a caregiver's personal life. Therefore, authorities, policymakers, and health-care providers should pay more attention to support these people.