I wonder too whether for some of those who build their identity online through spoonie-related groups, membership of a group is as important to them as whatever the condition is in itself. To be “cured” would be to be stripped therefore, of that identity. If they're not a member of this particular group, are they just some random normie and no longer special?
The impossibility (or undesirability?) of cure also reminded me of the mindset of 12 Step programs. That an alcoholic is always an alcoholic, that there is no such thing as a former drunk. This worldview holds that it is therefore impossible for someone who is actually addicted to alcohol to simply cut back to moderate social drinking. It is an all-or-nothing enterprise. (This is something with which many people with a history of substance abuse have struggled).
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