Continuity after a stroke: implications of life-course disruption in old age

Abstract

Life-course disruption caused by a stroke and subsequent attempts on the part of stoke victims to restore continuity was explored through qualitative research with a sample of 216 persons. This research suggests: 1) that theory in gerontology could be deepened by framing continuity to include discontinuous experience in late life; and 2) that research on what elderly persons themselves make of continuity--how they perpetuate it or recreate it and the obstacles they perceive in doing so--may inform our understanding of the experience of old age and lead to applications in the practice of gerontology that address the disruption illness poses for people's lives.