Ménière's disease and biographical disruption: Where family transitions collide

Abstract

People's lived experiences of chronic illness have garnered increasing research interest over the last 30-40 years, with studies recognising the disruptive influence of illness onset and progression, both to people's everyday lives and to their biographical selves. We extend this body of work, drawing on the experiences of people living with Ménière's disease; a long-term progressive vestibular disorder characterised by unpredictable episodes of debilitating vertigo, tinnitus and permanent sensorineural hearing loss. In response to calls for more critical examination of the wider biographical contexts in which chronic illnesses are encountered, we draw on 28 in-depth narrative interviews with Ménière's patients and their family members to discuss how personal chronic illness experiences may be closely entwined with, and deeply shaped by, the life transitions (illness-related and otherwise) of 'linked others'. Interviews were conducted in south west England from January to June 2015. Focusing on intersecting transitions of parenthood, caregiving and retirement, we explore how and why familial relationships can both facilitate and hinder adaptation to a lifetime of chronically disrupted normalities, contributing to fluctuating experiences of 'cherished time', 'anomalous time' and 'turbulent time'. In so doing, we suggest that the onset and progression of chronic illness could usefully be re-conceptualised as one of many 'biographical oscillations' encountered during the life course that serve to re-route us between continually shifting life trajectories. In recognising life's dynamism and challenging the identity-limiting and self-damaging nature of entrenched cultural life course constructions, we suggest value in recognising alternative ways of 'living well' when negotiating the wide-ranging biographical maps that life can follow.

Disruption, changes, and adaptation: Experiences with chronic conditions in Mozambique, Nepal and Peru

“…Our findings add to the literature on the disruptive effects of having a chronic condition (Becker, 1994;Bury, 1982;Mattingly & Garro, 2000) and the literature that highlights economic costs, changes in time allocation, emotional adjustments by those who live with a person affected by a chronic condition (Basra & Finlay, 2007;Bell, Tyrrell, & Phoenix, 2016;Lawrence, 2012;Mayberry, Harper, & Osborn, 2016). The experiences shared by informants coincide with what has been conceptualised as 'disruption', yet they also highlight the relevance of taking into consideration specific contextual issues such as the available resources to face the condition, including understanding their interaction with the health system (Unwin, Epping Jordan, & Bonita, 2004).…”

Living with Ménière's Disease: Understanding Patient Experiences of Mental Health and Well-Being in Everyday Life

“…Recurring throughout participants' narratives were anxieties linked to the sudden onset of symptoms (vertigo in particular), their varying severity and the unpredictable progression of the condition [16][17][18]. The accumulation of these anxieties over time resulted in a significant loss of confidence, independence and a deep sense of frustration amongst participants, who likened it to 'driving a car with a dodgy break' and serving a 'prison sentence' with no clear release date.…”

An interpretative phenomenological analysis of the experience of living with colorectal cancer as a chronic illness

“…Biographical disruption has been used extensively in research looking at adaptation to chronic illness (Trusson, Pilnick, & Roy, ) and relates to the disruption caused to one's everyday life following illness and the impact it can have on self‐concept and hopes for the future (Bell, Tyrrell, & Phoenix, ).…”