Identity and sense of self: the significance of personhood in rehabilitation.

Abstract

Recovery from conditions leading to illness/disability is often defined in terms of physical improvement; however, people themselves describe their own recovery as more than this alone: it is a returning to the life they led before their illness. These two approaches highlight a potential mismatch between the way we as health care professionals perceive our world (the observable) and the way the people we are caring for perceive their world (often hidden from us). In this presentation I will explore how we can access the subjective world of those who use our services by exploring the role of life narratives within rehabilitation. I will share ideas from research linked to life changes, sense of self, and agency which we can use to inform our practice and support people in their recovery and rehabilitation.