title: It's like a black woman's Charlie Brown moment: An autoethnography of being diagnosed with lupus.
abstract: This essay uses autoethnography to relate the experience of being diagnosed with lupus. By using my personal experiences and a discussion of illness and Black women's health, I critically examine larger critical race issues of race, gender, and the social barriers to health care. Specifically, the essay focuses on the ways in which race impacts my experiences with the healthcare system, from my own insecurities of being stereotyped to the ways that doctors interact with me. The essay is framed by popular quotes from Charlie Brown because they help mediate the very personal experiences I am recounting.
authors.affiliation: New York City College of Technology, USA.
authors.forename: Renata
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Ferdinand
mesh_terms: D001741:Black or African American / Q000266:history* / Q000523:psychology; D000884:Anthropology, Cultural; D002359:Cartoons as Topic / Q000266:history* / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D049673:History, 20th Century; D049674:History, 21st Century; D006801:Humans; D008180:Lupus Erythematosus, Systemic / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000208:ethnology / Q000266:history* / Q000523:psychology; D009519:New York City; D010817:Physician-Patient Relations
keywords: Black women; anxiety; autoethnography; chronic; narratives; race