Can current post-traumatic growth models capture the lived experience of life with a fluctuating chronic illness? Towards a new model.

introductionMore than 15 million people in the UK live with a chronic illness, and this figure is only due to increase (Care and support for long term conditions, 2024). Living with these illnesses can involve surviving ongoing trauma. Such trauma can lead to psychologically distressing emotions akin to post-traumatic stress, where the self-concept is threatened and disorganized (Psychology and Psychotherapy: Theory, Research and Practice, 2004, 77, 101). Theories of post-traumatic growth following such stress provide a useful lens for viewing traumatic events (Rehabilitation Psychology, 2014, 59, 10). However, an alternative view may be needed when considering the trauma experienced by those living with chronic, fluctuating illnesses. This paper highlights the psychological impact of life with a chronic illness through an examination of women's experiences of living with inflammatory bowel disease. It examines the impact of this condition on their sense of self, including experiences of growth.

methodSemi-structured interviews were conducted with 16 women within the UK, and the resulting co-created data were analysed using the Stevick-Colaizzi-Keen method (Phenomenological research methods, 1994).

resultsFour key interconnecting themes were identified: wearing the straitjacket of illness, which leads to psychologically difficult emotions, which are successfully managed, or not, through flexibility of self, which impacts the path to navigating a way through. A model of traumatic chronic illness survival emerged, which challenges counsellors and clinical psychologists to reconsider their preconceptions of those living with a chronic, retraumatising illness.

conclusionRather than holding an expectation of 'growth' due to illness, this model celebrates the multitude of ways people survive in the face of such devastating conditions.