Introduction:

Peritoneal dialysis is a complex treatment because it requires both a strict therapeutic regimen and a greater development of autonomy to manage it.

Objective:

To analyze the construction of the autonomy in women with chronic kidney disease to perform peritoneal dialysis at home.

Material and Method:

This is a qualitative study, theoretically supported by Paulo Freire's concept of autonomy. Fourteen women on peritoneal dialysis participated in the study. The data were produced in a nephrology service in the Southern Region of Brazil, from April 2013 to June 2014, through semi-structured and open interviews, organized in the Ethnograph v6 program and submitted to content analysis.

Results:

Four categories were identified that describe the construction of women's autonomy, which are: Emergence of the disease: search for care and diagnosis, need to perform peritoneal dialysis in the hospital; Care transition: support and assistance for returning home, and managing peritoneal dialysis at home.

Conclusion:

The construction of women's autonomy occurred during the illness process and continued when they returned home with self-management of dialysis. Still, it was evidenced that the recognition of the own body and constant evaluation of the dialysis had a key role in the empowerment of such women and help them to decide on the treatment.

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