Processing Breast Cancer Experience in Under-Fifty Women: Longitudinal Trajectories of Narrative Sense Making Functions

Abstract

Cancer narration is an elective tool to construct sensemaking processes aimed at supporting adaptation to the experience. The literature lacks a longitudinal narrative sensemaking exploration of breast cancer experience (BC) at an age below 50 years old. We administered an ad hoc narrative interview during pre-hospitalization-T1/postoperative counseling-T2/adjuvant therapy-T3/follow-up-T4. This study is a qualitative analysis of how narrative functions, as semiotic connection processes at the base of adaptation to the experience, are articulated during the four phases. Results highlight that the function of the organization of temporality changes from a relieved mode-T1 to reconstructive/chronological/blocked-T4; the search for meaning changes from an internalized mode-T1 to an internalized/externalized/generalized/nonsense-T4; emotional regulation changes from pervasive mode-T1 to connected/pervasive/disconnected -T4; and orientation to action changes from uncertain mode-T1 to combative-T2-T3-T4. From a clinical health psychology perspective, the different natural sensemaking trajectories emerged suggest constructing a personalized narrative intervention to follow the natural path of adaptation during BC experience, not only at the end, to accompany phases of integration and fluidity and to support phases of psychic stiffening and disconnection.