Self-Help Literature and the Making of an Illness Identity: The Case of Fibromyalgia Syndrome (FMS)

She reads, he reads: gender differences and learning through self-help books

“…Existing studies tend to interpret the meaning of self-help books, and then impute the supposed impact of those books on those who read them. There are some exceptions to this pattern; existing works that have undertaken original research with actual readers of self-help literature include Barker, 2002;Bruneau, Bubenzer, & McGlothlin, 2010;Gabriel & Forest, 2004;Grodin, 1991;Knudson, 2013;Lichterman, 1992;Ogles, Craig, & Lambert, 1991;Scholz & Forest, 1997;and Simonds, 1992. When it comes to exploring gender differences, the gap between theoretical interest and research involving self-help readers is even wider. Of the nine works identified above as having undertaken direct research with self-help readers, five were conducted exclusively with female participants (Barker, 2002;Bruneau, Bubenzer, & McGlothlin, 2010;Grodin, 1991;Scholz & Forest, 1997;and Simonds, 1992).…”

‘Stealing Me from Myself’: Identity and Recovery in Personal Accounts of Mental Illness

“…The Green model of recovery processes proposes that key tasks of recovery revolve around the learning process that occurs when individuals with mental illness immerse themselves in their illness in order to become more knowledgeable about its management, effects, and the meaning it has in their lives [8]. Adopting an 'illness identity' may be a natural part of this immersion process [8][9][10][11][12]. At the same time, recent studies support the importance of a durable sense of self in the recovery of severe mental illnesses such as schizophrenia [13]; yet being diagnosed with a stigmatized disorder, and societal responses to that disorder, can have important negative effects on identity and selfdefinition [14].…”

“I'm not the woman I was”: Women's perceptions of the effects of fibromyalgia on private life

“…But it is also the performative construction of refusing the sick-role by engaging into a culturally-recognizable activity -in the face of the possibility of sickness taking over the identity here. In their insistence to continue with daily responsibilities women with FM construct a "toughness," an identity of non-whimpy patient (Barker, 2002). Perhaps what we traditionally see as the sexist oppression of sexual division of labour gives women here a unique opportunity for resistance.…”