Currently submitted to: Journal of Medical Internet Research
Date Submitted: Mar 29, 2026
Open Peer Review Period: Mar 30, 2026 - May 30, 2026
(currently open for review)
Warning: This is an author submission that is not peer-reviewed or edited. Preprints - unless they show as "accepted" - should not be relied on to guide clinical practice or health-related behavior and should not be reported in news media as established information.
Chaos, Stigma, Resilience, and Solidarity: Digital Narratives of Young Chinese Diabetics on RedNote
ABSTRACT
Background:
Chronic illness often disrupts individuals’ everyday lives and sense of self, particularly among young patients navigating identity formation. In the context of expanding digital media, online platforms have become important spaces where patients articulate illness experiences and seek support, yet how these processes unfold in non-Western contexts remains underexplored.
Objective:
This study investigates how young Chinese diabetics negotiate their experiences of diabetes, and reconstruct their identities in response to chronic illness in digital spaces.
Methods:
A thematic analysis was conducted on 303 narrative posts from RedNote, a Chinese social media platform featuring intimate, user-generated storytelling.
Methods:
A thematic analysis was conducted on 303 narrative posts from RedNote, a Chinese social media platform featuring intimate, user-generated storytelling.
Results:
Four narrative types were identified: chaos (cognitive dissonance and disordered life), stigma (social withdrawal and discrimination), resilience (emotional fortitude and self-routinization), and solidarity (familial solidarity and reciprocal digital community).
Conclusions:
These narratives reveal diverse strategies through which young diabetics manage disruption and regain agency. The study extends biographical disruption theory by conceptualizing disruption as a dynamic, relational process of digital re-storying, offering insights for culturally sensitive health communication and online patient support.
Citation
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Copyright
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