Experiences Of The Recovering Crack Cocaine Addicted African American Woman Within A Self Care Framework

The purpose of this study was to explore the experiences of women recovering from crack cocaine addiction with a secondary purpose to explore how the addiction affected their ability for self-care. The psychophenomenological study examined the recovering African-American woman's ability to meet her requisites utilizing Orem's (1995) Self-care deficit theory of nursing as a framework. Five African-American women, 18 to 45 years of age, addicted to crack cocaine and in recovery six months to two years, were selected as a convenience sample from women enrolled in the aftercare phase of a recovery program. Participation was strictly voluntary and confidentiality was maintained at all times. After obtaining the informed consent from each participant, a self-administered biographical questionnaire was completed, followed by an audio taped interview consisting of three questions. Van Kaam's (1966, 1987) Psychophenomenological Method was used for data analysis.