Psychological considerations in gastrointestinal nursing.

Body image changes and psychological adaptation are often associated with patients who have gastrointestinal disease due to the potential alteration to physical appearance through the very nature of the disease process or treatment. This article describes some of the psychological issues highlighted by patients with gastrointestinal disease, including loss of bowel control, withdrawal and concealment. It highlights altered image difficulties and adaptation through the patients' journey and treatment with illustrations from patients' narratives. In doing so, it explores the nurse's role and stresses the necessity for nurses to seek training to become skillful in counselling this group of patients towards exploring and identifying their individual psychological problems.