Accounts of Chemical Intolerance
Abstract:
Given the need for further understanding of Chemical Intolerance (CI), the aim was to examine how persons living with CI describe their experiences of the course of CI. Eleven participants were recruited via Swedish websites hosted by CI support groups. A questionnaire was sent by postal mail to participants, and their written replies were analysed narratively. The analysis resulted in 5 types of narrative. The types were constructed based on similarities in onset and course of CI. Differences between types were related to possible effects on health and well-being based on theories of social support, coping and basic psychological needs. Differences in participants’ perceptions of symptom onset were related to aetiological theories of CI. Implications of similarities between types were also discussed. The 5 narrative types were similar in their descriptions of alienation from society and poor social support. Perceptions of symptom onset differed between types with regard to suddenness, point in life and cause of symptoms. Moreover, the results indicate that coping among persons with CI is dynamic and vary with contextual conditions.
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