“O QUE ALIVIA A MINHA DOR”: EXPERIÊNCIA DE PESQUISA POR MEIO DO PHOTOVOICE JUNTO A ADOLESCENTES EM SOFRIMENTO PSÍQUICO

Abstract

Adolescents are social categories crossed by preventable or treatable health conditions, as well as barriers to accessing health services. The mental health of adolescents has been a worrying phenomenon in recent years. The literature recommends that professionals, public managers and researchers urgently need collaborative action and research with children and adolescents, especially those in situations of vulnerability. To reflect on the use of participatory data collection strategies - photovoice - in research with adolescents in psychological distress. An experience report on the use of photovoice to collect data from nine adolescents in the state of São Paulo, Brazil, between March and July 2021.  Three meetings were held with the adolescents, which allowed them to delve deeper into the question "What relieves my pain", bringing empowerment and a salutogenic look at adolescent life experiences. At the last meeting, a proposal was made to create a booklet with the images and experiences reported, in order to support other adolescents. The study presents a data collection strategy that allowed the voices of a marginalized and suffering group to be accessed through genuine and safe channels. In addition to this relevant aspect of the research, it can be a therapeutic tool, as adolescents have been able to appropriate their experiences in a more salutogenic way. Finally, in addition to being a strategy to be used in low-cost research that is coherent with adolescents, it can foster health literacy, as well as having generated a technology (an educational booklet) that demonstrates the capacity and power of adolescents as multipliers of knowledge.