The purposes of this study were to describe the normative patterns of appraisal, coping and emotions displayed over time by women experiencing hysterectomy and to determine the relationships among these variables and indices of recovery. Indices of recovery included: amount of pain medication received; pre-operative and post-operative length of stay; difference between pre-admission and post-discharge level of social functioning and, presence of complications. Measurements were made at: Time-1--after scheduled for surgery and at least one week prior to admission; Time-2--the evening before surgery; Time-3--the third or fourth post-operative day; and Time-4--at six weeks post-operatively. A purposive sample of thirty-two women scheduled for elective hysterectomy took part in the study. Of these, twenty-six completed The Hysterectomy Survey, The Ways of Coping Questionnaire, and the Profile of Mood States (POMS) at all four times.

The results indicated: (1) Appraisal changed over time with the greatest number and degree of concerns prior to admission; (2) Most subjects evidenced little concern with alteration in femininity, sexuality or body changes and were most concerned about relief from the gynecological problem; (3) Overall coping and four specific types of coping, the use of distancing, social support, emphasizing the positive and information seeking, did not evidence change over time; (4) Emotions decreased over time, none of the sample means evidenced mood disturbance, and the most evidence of mood disturbance among individuals occurred the evening before surgery; (5) POMS subscores revealed Vigor as lowest at Time-3 however Fatigue did not differ over time and was highest at Time-1; (6) Positive relationships were found among appraisal, coping and emotions during the post-operative hospital observation and between appraisal and coping at Times-2 and 4; (7) Positive relationships were found between emotions at Time-1 and the amount of analgesic the patient received while the only inverse relationship found was between social functioning and emotions at Time-1; (8) Appraisal and emotion scores were greater during the outpatient observations thus challenging the assumption that hospitalization is the most acutely stressful phase of surgical illness. The findings contribute to the knowledge of coping with stressful events and provide a step toward planning interventions.