TY  - JOUR
A1  - Hänel, Hilkje C.
T1  - Potentially disabled?
JF  - Inquiry
N2  - Ten years ago, I was diagnosed with a rare illness called Myasthenia Gravis. Myasthenia Gravis is a long-term neuromuscular autoimmune disease where antibodies block or destroy specific receptors at the junction between nerve and muscle; hence, nerve impulses fail to trigger muscle contractions. The disease leads to varying degrees of muscle weakness. Currently, I have only minor symptoms, I am not seriously impaired, and I do not suffer from any social disadvantage because of my illness. Yet, my life and my body since my diagnosis feel different than before. In this paper I aim to make this feeling intelligible and propose that it is a state of what I call ‘latent impairment’. Latent impairment is a state of being ‘in between’, different from being actually impaired and also different from being abled-bodied. The theory takes its cues both from social constructionist theories of disability as well as theories of (chronic) illness and their focus on the importance of subjectivity. Furthermore, I suggest that a phenomenological understanding of latent impairment can show possible ways of becoming an ally to the DRM.
KW  - disability
KW  - chronic illness
KW  - latent impairment
KW  - social construction
Y1  - 2022
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1080/0020174X.2022.2136753
SN  - 0020-174X
SN  - 1502-3923
SP  - 1
EP  - 26
PB  - Routledge, Taylor & Francis
CY  - London
ER  -