Experiences of Physical Activity for People with Multiple Sclerosis in New Zealand

Abstract

Being physically active is important for health, happiness, and longevity, however many people diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis (MS) have difficulty continuing to be physically active. This narrative study draws upon the voices and insights of eight people with MS, of varied age, diagnosis, and mobility to understand their beliefs, thoughts, feelings, and motivations for physical activity. The research aims to investigate the lived experiences of physical activity of those who continue to be active and thereby inform how health professionals can better deliver programmes that support and facilitate greater levels of physical activity in those with MS. This study is underpinned by the conceptual framework of salutogenesis, which advocates a proactive orientation to health and focuses on factors that maintain health rather than those which reduce the risk of disease.

Interviews of the participants were analysed using reflexive thematic analysis and themes of knowing, meaning, managing, and enabling were identified. The themes illustrate why, and in what way, participants are physically active, and the various support systems they utilise to maintain levels of physical activity. The interviews revealed that those with MS are physically active in many ways, outside of any prescribed modality, and that the activities they undertake bring them confidence, pleasure, and an element of control over the course of their condition. The themes that have been identified can be used by health and exercise professionals as a guide to encourage conversations about physical activity and thereby promote, deliver, and support interventions that meet the needs and requirements of those with MS in New Zealand, while also enabling those with MS to understand, control and manage their own health outcomes.