This is an exploratory-descriptive and qualitative study realized with the objective to know the social representations expressed by women who did hysterectomy and also, to identify some of the factors that interfere in their lives twelve women who did hysterectomy were the informers of a university hospital from Rio Grande do Sul. Data were collected in September and October of 2006 through interviews and they were analyzed by the thematic content. Two categories were identified: Hysterectomy's negatives and positives representations in women's lives. Both of them are referring to the uterus' meaning and to the woman's life context. The negative representations are due to prejudices, inability to become mothers and in the sexual disinterest, with its possible interferences on conjugal life. The positive ones result from the way women feel after the surgery which is good and the life quality improvement. It is necessary to give some space to the discussion about living without a uterus focusing to prevent conjugal and personal conflicts.

This is an exploratory-descriptive and qualitative study realized with the objective to know the social representations expressed by women who did hysterectomy and also, to identify some of the factors that interfere in their lives twelve women who did hysterectomy were the informers of a university hospital from Rio Grande do Sul. Data were collected in September and October of 2006 through interviews and they were analyzed by the thematic content. Two categories were identified: Hysterectomy's negatives and positives representations in women's lives. Both of them are referring to the uterus' meaning and to the woman's life context. The negative representations are due to prejudices, inability to become mothers and in the sexual disinterest, with its possible interferences on conjugal life. The positive ones result from the way women feel after the surgery which is good and the life quality improvement. It is necessary to give some space to the discussion about living without a uterus focusing to prevent conjugal and personal conflicts.
 

Estudo qualitativo, exploratório-descritivo, realizado com os objetivos de conhecer as representações sociais de mulheres submetidas à histerectomia e identificar alguns fatores que interferem no seu processo de viver. Foram informantes 12 mulheres histerectomizadas em um hospital universitário no Rio Grande do Sul. Os dados foram coletados em setembro e outubro de 2006 por meio de entrevistas e tratados pela análise de conteúdo temática. Foram identificadas duas categorias: representações negativas e representações positivas da histerectomia no viver das mulheres. Ambas referem-se ao significado atribuído ao útero e ao contexto vivencial da mulher. As negativas foram ancoradas em preconceitos, incapacidade de serem mães e no desinteresse sexual, com possíveis interferências na vida conjugal. As positivas, no bem-estar após a cirurgia e na melhoria da qualidade de vida. É essencial disponibilizar espaço para a problematização do viver sem útero, com vistas a prevenir conflitos pessoais e conjugais.