Optimizing patient education for people with obesity: possible use of the autobiographical approach.

Objective: To review recent results of the current approaches to the education of obese people, focusing on the motivation for healthy behaviors, and to present the narrative-autobiographical approach as a possible tool in the education of obese people.

Methods: Our overview will necessarily be partial, and limited to some studies that succeeded in improving the motivation for healthy lifestyles in people with overweight or obesity. We will also describe the use of the autobiographical approach in the "Io-muovo-la-mia-vita" project.

The narrative-autobiographical approach in the group education of adolescents with diabetes: a qualitative research on its effects.

Objective: To introduce a narrative-autobiographical approach in the care and education of adolescents with type-1 diabetes and observe the effects of this novel approach on adolescents' self-awareness, concern for self-care, and well-being.

Methods: Ninety-four adolescents with type-1 diabetes attending one 9-day summer camp in 2004, 2005, or 2006 participated in structured daily self-writing proposals on diabetes, integrated with daily interactive self-management education. After some months, we sent participants interview-like questionnaires, and two independent researchers performed a qualitative analysis of the 50 answers that were mailed back.