External mirroring of inner chaos: blogging as experienced by the relatives of people with cancer

Background: Relatives of a person suffering from cancer risk being affected both physically and psychologically. Blogging has become increasingly popular as a forum for communicating experiences, but few studies have focused on what blogging about a relative's cancer journey means to the author. Aim: To illuminate relatives' experiences of blogging when a family member is in the end-of-life phase of cancer. Method: Telephone interviews were conducted with 12 people about their experiences of blogging during and after their family member's illness. The data was analysed using qualitative content analysis. Findings: Blogging facilitated everyday life, introduced the relatives to new friends with similar experiences, helped them in their grief process, and helped them to preserve memories. The negative aspects were being misunderstood and publicly criticised as well as the feeling of providing readers with 'reality show' entertainment. Conclusion: Blogging was seen as a complement to professional care that contributed to the prevention of ill health.