Roland, Abageal

Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE) is a chronic autoimmune disorder in which the immune system attacks all tissues in the body, including internal organs and skin. In my thesis, I examine the health narratives of people living with SLE. Health narratives are introspective autobiographical accounts of illness. I selected internet blogs by three women living with SLE in order to understand how the internet facilitates the synthesis and sharing of these health narratives. Blogs have been utilized by many with chronic illness as a pathway to public forum for both communal celebration of health milestones, as well as commiseration and empathy-seeking. Through the analysis of three blogs by women with SLE, I argue against the previous notion that the formation of health narratives are a promotion of “success stories,” and support the original concept of health narratives as continual “progress stories.”