User narratives in
psychosomatics
and alexithymia
An autoethnographic
study
John Hills, University of
Leeds
“Head face anatomy lateral view”
Patrick J. Lynch, medical illustrator
Creative Commons Attribution 2.5
License 2006
First person research
‘The use of the first person
can facilitate the reader to
regard the report as one
interpretation out of many,
whereas the third person or
the passive case suggests a
single correct reading of the
findings.’
Freshwater and Rolfe,
Critical Reflexivity
The Primeval Scene
‘[T]he only relevant
criterion by which to
consider the natural
adaptedness of any
particular part of presentday man’s behavioural
equipment is the degree to
which and the way in which
it might contribute to
population survival in man’s
primeval environment.’
John Bowlby, Attachment
and Loss, Vol. 1
Implications for Practice and further
research
‘Is it psychogenic or
real? The answer is it’s
pain.’
Ann Neville-Jan,
Encounters in a World
of Pain
Thanks for listening!
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Bowlby, J. 1971. Attachment and Loss, Volume I. Penguin
Education edition, 1978
Doran, N.J., 2014. Experiencing wellness within illness :
Exploring a mindfulness-based approach to chronic back
pain. Qualitative Health Research, 24 (6), pp. 749-760.
Freshwater, D. & Rolfe, G. 2001. Critical Reflexivity: a
politically and ethically engaged research method for
nursing. NT Research. 6(1), pp.526-537
Gay, P (ed) 1989. The Freud Reader. London : W.W.
Norton & Company
Levine, P.A. 1997. Waking the Tiger: Healing Trauma.
USA : North Atlantic Books
Neville-Jan, A. 2003. Encounters in a World of Pain.
American Journal of Occupational Therapy. 57(1), pp.8898
Roth, W-M. 2012. First Person Methods: Towards an
Empirical Phenomenology of Experience. Netherlands :
Sense Publishers
Rothschild, B. 2000. The Body Remembers: the
psychophysiology of trauma and trauma treatment. USA :
W.W. Norton & Company
Sanders, D. 1996. Counselling for Psychosomatic
Problems. UK : Sage Publications