Health and Sickness in Stories and Life

Over the last year or so, I've thought a lot about the concept of health. More recent events have caused me to think about it all the more.


For the purposes of this post, I'll be using the word "disorder" as a catch all for any form of unhealthiness from sicknesses like the cold, to mental disorders, to broken bones, to things like cancer, etc. I understand that these things are not all considered medical "disorders", but they are things that disturb the "order" of a person and of their life.


In television, movies, and most forms of fiction, unless the story is about disorder/how the disorder affects the lives of people with it, most of the time characters are portrayed as generally having good health.


In real life, disorder is a lot of times looked at as something shameful, burdensome, or as a form of weakness. Sure, things happen, someone goes to the hospital and everyone acknowledges the severity of the active disorder and shows sympathy and support, but that's usually only in a limited window of severity and time. (There are, of course, exceptions, but I'm looking at a lot of generalities in my experiences.)


With the shame, people are taught to reel in their disorder, to hide it from others, to not talk about it a lot, and generally to do a lot of coping on their own.


These things shaped my perception of people and of reality.


I believed that being "healthy" was the norm, and this is not the case.


It turns out, as I've talked to people and paid more attention over the last year or so, a significant portion of people I know have some ongoing disorder in varying degrees. Maybe it's a debilitating or chronic physical thing. Maybe it's a mental disorder. Maybe it's even just an inescapable psychosis which needs ongoing therapy. These things all affect people's lives. Even if whatever it is can be treated with medication, usually that just bring someone *close* to healthy. It allows them to hide and blend in, hide, not be a burden, but there are almost always still some effects from the disorder, not to mention side effects of medication.


This isn't really being represented in fiction. Should it be?


There are a number of benefits that would come from having more people with disorders in fiction, especially fiction that doesn't focus on the fact that they have a disorder. For one, it would bring fiction closer to our reality, something for which the merits are debatable. But, as a larger point, having characters with disorder that are portrayed in a positive light become more commonplace could help to remove the stigma of having disorder in oneself. People who have disorder might feel less like they have to hide their weaknesses, and more willing to be themselves. They wouldn't have to feel ashamed. Then, rather than bearing the whole burden of this terrible thing that isn't their fault, this terrible thing that is happening to them, alone, they can find help, support, and comfort from those around them. The people who look down on those with disorder might begin to see that it's not so bad and, even more so, not the fault of the person with the disorder. Over time, increasing this trend could help to make society more accepting and more honest.


So why isn't it happening now?


We, the audience, don't want it to.  We all know those episodes of tv shows where a major character gets sick/severely injured, or where a character shows up who has health issues. Those are very rarely, if ever, our favorite episodes. We have been trained that when this happens the plot will slow. A lot of the time it will become more serious than normal as it focuses on how the disorder affects all the other characters. We can accept these episodes as "good" or "important" but they aren't the ones we choose to rewatch.


We like our characters to be able and capable and not have to have struggles or issues separate from the main conflicts of the story. We see health issues as either the story itself, in the case of stories focused on disorder, or as distractions from the story in stories that aren't.


Disorder is real in a way that fiction isn't.


While a lot of fiction tries to maintain a level of realism, it also has a structure that real life doesn't often follow. Some authors weave themes through their stories that would often be difficult to work disorder into without focusing on it. Most stories have some sort of plot arc, and disorders could (and often do) disrupt that arc.


Disorder doesn't follow themes or arcs. It doesn't necessarily show up at times that are dramatically appropriate. If it's being portrayed accurately, it shows up unexpectedly. Sometimes it is severe enough to put the rest of one's life, the rest of one's story, on hold. Sometimes it's just an interruption. But it rarely has anything to do with the other things going on in a person's life. It doesn't "fit."  It doesn't go well with an existing story.


I don't have a solution.


I want disorder to be better represented. I want to live in that world where people don't feel ashamed about their struggles. I want to live in the world that acknowledges that perfect health is not the norm and that everyone is going through something. I think fiction can be a part of getting to that world.


But I also don't want to read the stories that are super focused on disorder. I don't want to feel like "oh, this character is only in this story for social justice reasons." I don't want disorder to be forced. I don't really want to read about disorder. I don't want disorder to disrupt my stories.


I want the benefits, but I struggle, both as a writer and as an audience member, with the execution. I don't know how a good negotiation works.


Possibly one of the best I've seen is the webcomic d20 Monkey which includes a blind supporting character. It isn't made a big deal of, but it is consistent throughout the comic.


I do have a major character in Heroism and Other Lies who has a physical disorder, and I like to think I pull this off well, but I still don't feel like the work as a whole is particularly representative. Nor am I sure how much it should be.