Social Support and Narrative Sensemaking Online: A Content Analysis of Facebook Posts by COVID-19 Long Haulers

Long-haul COVID-19 – the lingering effects of the coronavirus in patients – is still a mystery. After being infected with the virus, a number of COVID-19 long haulers have suffered from post-COVID-19 symptoms for days, weeks, or months. There is no explanation why people experience long-haul COVID, and at the moment, there is no known cure. This study examined the COVID-19 Long Haulers Journey Facebook group and analyzed its contents to evaluate how long haulers use narrative sensemaking online. Living with illness uncertainty, COVID-19 long haulers used social media as a virtual social support community for them to share illness narratives as they struggle to make sense of their health conditions and cope with high-stress, uncertain events. The data collected identified the significance of the sensemaking process in managing complex health situations and the value of the social media platform as a source of information and social support for wounded storytellers in the midst of uncertainty.