Obesity, Lived Experience, and the Self: A Qualitative Study of Overweight People in Iran

Obesity is an identity that is the result of the overweight person’s experience and perception of this problem. The purpose of this study is to evaluate various aspects of the lived experience and changes in the self for 29 sleeve surgery patients from two hospitals in southern Iran. After in-depth, open-ended interviews with 29 sleeve candidate patients (24 females and 5 males), their statements were analyzed through a thematic method. Findings revealed that obesity is a continually negative experience with four characteristics for participants: losses, limitations, psychological pressures, and social pressures. These experiences can lead to profound changes in the self and cause the patient to develop self-hatred, submissiveness, and passivity. Obesity involves a diversity of negative experiences; more consideration should be given to overweight people, especially overweight women. Accordingly, social policymakers should help by desensitizing this problem in society through media, universities, and schools. Also, fostering a positive attitude in these individuals is important and would require paying attention to their individual, psychological, and social needs through teamwork.