Abstract
This article is an autoethnographic investigation of the impact of childhood cancer. How has cancer made me into who I am today? How has cancer affected my life? How can I use my cancer to help others better understand? In order to address these questions, I place memories within my story to reveal the answers to the questions. As I portray my cancer experience as an understanding of myself, I find that my most cherished moments come from when my family helped and supported me through my journey. My autoethnographic journey links the family systems theory to portray the family as one emotional unit and to point out the complex changes being made in the unit. The theory points out the relationship between parent and child and continues to pursue the emotional connectivity within each system. There is a need for autoethnography to underline questions of self that relate to the family systems and gives insight to my childhood cancer experience.
Keywords: autoethnography, cancer, family systems theory
Additional information
Author information
Baylee Holder is a student in the Leonhart Schiemer School of Psychology and Biblical Counseling program. He is expected to earn a bachelors degree in Psychology 2020.