In the kingdom of the sick : a social history of chronic illness in America / Laurie Edwards.

Includes bibliographical references (pages 225-235) and index.

Thirty years ago, Susan Sontag wrote "Everyone who is born holds dual citizenship in the kingdom of the well and the kingdom of the sick ... Sooner or later each of us is obliged, at least for a spell, to identify ourselves as citizens of that other place." Now more than 133 million Americans live with chronic illness, accounting for nearly three-quarters of all health care dollars, and untold pain and disability. There has been an alarming rise in illnesses that defy diagnosis through clinical tests or have no known cure. Millions of people, especially women, with illnesses such as irritable bowel syndrome, chronic pain, and chronic fatigue syndrome face skepticism from physicians and the public alike. And people with diseases as varied as cardiovascular disease, HIV, certain cancers, and type 2 diabetes have been accused of causing their preventable illnesses through their lifestyle choices. We must balance our faith in medical technology with awareness of the limits of science, and confront our throwback beliefs that people who are sick have weaker character than those who are well. Through research and patient narratives, the author, a health writer, explores patient rights, the role of social media in medical advocacy, the origins of our attitudes about chronic illness, and much more.

From Plato to polio: Chronic disease in historical context -- An awakening: Medicine and illness in post-World War Two America -- Disability rights, civil rights, and chronic illness -- The Women's Health Movement and patient empowerment -- Culture, consumerism, and character: Chronic illness and patient advocacy in the 1980s and 1990s -- A slight hysterical tendency: Revisiting "The girl who cried pain" -- Into the fray: Patients in the digital age -- Participatory medicine and transparency -- What future, at what cost?