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Article History

Received: 14 July 2025

Accepted: 9 February 2026

First Online: 23 February 2026

Declarations

:

: The authors declare no conflict of interest.

: This study is based on an autoethnographic and phenomenologically inspired exploration of the first author’s lived experience with myasthenia gravis. As no other participants were involved, no formal ethical approval was required. Written informed consent was obtained from the author MM prior to commencing the study. While no formal approval was required, the inherently personal nature of autoethnographic inquiry calls for ongoing ethical awareness beyond procedural compliance. Nonetheless, ethical considerations have been integral to the research process. As Forber-Pratt ( , p. 822) notes, “autoethnography is not for the faint of heart” . Throughout the development of the article, the first author has engaged in continuous reflexive dialogue with the co-authors, critically examining questions such as; What does it mean to share one’s embodied illness experience in a research context? What are the risks of over- or under-exposure? How can the personal be articulated without becoming private? These questions have been addressed through collaborative reflection, with the aim of ensuring that personal experience serves as a legitimate and meaningful entry point into broader phenomenological and clinical insight – not as self-exposure, but as an ethical and epistemic contribution to understanding illness.This work is grounded in the idea, expressed by scholars such as Arthur Frank ( ), Havi Carel ( ), and Kay Toombs ( ), that personal narratives are vital to illuminating the lived meaning of illness and can challenge dominant medical frameworks by offering alternative modes of understanding and ways of being-in-the-world during illness.