Unique Voices Blog

The times we’re living might be represented as one of massive communication. Millions of individuals express themselves “on-line”.

Some of the information, shared in blogs, articles and websites, very often relate to our everyday struggles. Most of them, are hereby influenced by mass media and constitute what some of us understand as a continuous on-going “spectacle”, as Guy Débord stated in his book “Society of the Spectacle.”

If we take into account communication as a “tool”, through we all can reach “dialogue” and/or “conversation”, we would be conveying efforts to what Heraclito has considered “koin nóoin”. In other words ,”what is common” or “what can be achieved in community”, “with each other”, so to speak.

As a health professional, working in the public sector for more than 36 years now, i had the privilege of knowing lot of stories on how people coped with different issues throughout their lives. Particularly how those persons relate to what doctors call or identify as “illnesses”. This particular category “illness”, also described as “disease” (should we call “dis-ease”?) can have a huge impact in someones’ life.This is just an example of how difficult it is to talk about someones’ problem and, at the same time, take into consideration “how they’re feeling inside”, the uneasiness and awkwardness of “being” ill.

Doctors, generally speaking, sustain “scientific objectivity and neutrality” that should be met by some “standards”, the ones we are confronted with when we are “in the shoes” of “feeling oneself ill.”Rarely, we admit we might end up in the same “objectified position” we place “patients”, mostly due to our reified everyday vocabulary. In this particular sense, the communication skills health professionals were trained to use, in my personal view refrain us to really engage in “communication with.” It is my assumption our training has contributed to isolate us, for the most part, of those “we treat” or “relate with.”

Thus, we consider crucially important the uniqueness of everyones’ voices, specially those who can bring up to the world hundred of stories of how they overcame socially constructed representations of “dis-eases” in our societies.Then, for a brief moment, we could use blogs (particularly this one) to unveil aspects of what is called “social construction” of narratives, as Kenneth Gergen refers to, as well as other scholars from modern social psychology.

In this way, we’re in pursue of stories, that could magnify, to some extent, different twists on how these persons narrate their lives. Above and beyond, we believe these stories and their voices can open new venues, creating “common ground”, as the communication, from latin word “communicare”, really means. That’s why we created Unique Voices Blog … a source of interchanging life stories, particularly those related to health issues. Stories that can inspire other people to share their personal and/or professional experiences about “disabilities”, “mental illness”, “autism” …

Although, some of us, we might undervalue our thinking, under the impression we don’t hold enough “writing skills credentials”, we’re on the verge to potentialize social contributions.

Paulo Freire, an undisputed brazilian teacher on the issues of pedagogy of autonomy, has taught us we all have “something to say” (or should we say “something to share”). His inspirational work on education has grown in different cultural backgrounds which value the excellence, of what is known these days as ‘ecology of knowledge”, as Boaventura Sousa-Santos states.

We should say, Paulo Freire’s “educational roots” and all Boaventura Sousa-Santos’ updated influences, are far more than just “inspirations” for some of us in the health field. Their work vigorously continue to embody the task we pursue collectively, the reason why we consider “sharing views” not only might deconstruct views of “loneliness”, but also add “some special cultural flavor” …

Unique Voices, as the main title of our publications, is not to be seen as a personal pathway we use in Medium, but a source through which several collaborations will surface the web, rooted in people’s writing. A flow of possible interactions using the magical stories we all carry with us, as Kenneth J. Gergen refers in “If Persons are Texts” !

We are specially searching for stories of women “here, there and everywhere”, who helped to deconstruct social prejudicial hierarchies the “disability” medical label have turned on for centuries. Their experiences, voices and writings are crucial to all of us … Welcome to UniqueVoices Blog … Special voices each and everyday !

Annibal Coelho de Amorim, MD / Brazil, Rio de Janeiro (23, january, 2016)