Self-directed learning to promote healthy lifestyles for adults with chronic illness

For adults living with type 2 diabetes, accessing self-directed learning opportunities to help manage and reduce their illness can be challenging due to many perceived barriers. Often, these struggles can limit access to medications, quality healthcare, and the resources needed for self-directed learning to decrease symptoms. Access to obtaining information within the healthcare system about their condition or lifestyle changes they might want to make can be difficult. The purpose of this qualitative narrative study was to explore the challenges and barriers to self-directed learning opportunities for adults with type 2 diabetes in central Indiana as they seek education to manage their condition and adopt healthy lifestyle habits. Five participants with type 2 diabetes shared their experiences, challenges, and their self-directed learning process related to their chronic illness. The study analyzed and identified the lack of knowledge and access to self-directed learning that hinders the promotion of healthy behaviors among adults with type 2 diabetes. The results of this study broaden the understanding of perceived barriers related to self-directed learning opportunities for adults with type 2 diabetes who want to learn how to adopt healthier lifestyle habits. The implications for future research included identifying perceived barriers, innovative ideas, methodologies, and opportunities that can be introduced to help adults with type 2 diabetes manage their chronic illness. Recommendations for future research could examine multiple diagnoses, broader demographics, and a different age range within chronic illness, which might offer additional perspectives to broaden the scope of the research questions