Dr Lucy Prodgers

Profile

I am a Chartered Psychologist and Lecturer in Psychological and Social Medicine at the Leeds Institute of Health Sciences. My research focuses on lived experiences of long-term and often “invisible” health conditions, such as Crohn’s disease, with a particular emphasis on chronic illness and fatigue. I explore how individuals make sense of symptoms, identity changes and bodily uncertainty through stories, creative expression, and everyday meaning-making practices.

Drawing on an interdisciplinary background in Psychology and English, I specialise in qualitative, narrative, dialogical and creative research methods. My work often involves collaboration with artists, Experts by Experience, and interdisciplinary colleagues to develop more inclusive and emotionally attuned approaches to understanding ill health. Increasingly, my research examines long-term fatigue across chronic health conditions.

My projects use a range of materials, from interviews and social media posts to creative artefacts, to understand how illness stories unfold over time and how people navigate their identities within them. Co-production and ethical reflexivity are central to my work, and I foreground researcher subjectivity as a meaningful part of qualitative knowledge generation.

At Leeds, I co-lead the Qualitative Reflective Practice Group, a friendly community of around 190 researchers exploring the complexities of qualitative inquiry.

Before joining the University, I gained substantial experience working with individuals living with long-term physical conditions, particularly those with Inflammatory Bowel Disease. I also trained in person-centred counselling and was a facilitator on the NHS Expert Patient Programme in Leeds.

Qualifications

• PhD Psychology (Awarded with research excellence)
• MPhil English Literature
• MSc Psychology (conversion)
• MA English Studies
• BA English Lit/Lang

Professional memberships

• Chartered member of the British Psychological Society
• FHEA
• International Society of Critical Health Psychology

Student education

I am co-lead of ENQUIRE-PPIE on years 2 and 3 of the MBChB programme and also teach on Individuals and Populations 1 & 2. I also supervise on the Doctorate in Clinical Psychology.

Doctoral Supervision:

• Fabiola Guerra, Exploring the perspectives on menstrual health among mental health practitioners working with young people in community settings, DClin Completed Sept 2025
• Sarah Jewers, Exploring Gender Diverse Young People’s Experiences of the UK’s Socio-Political Context and Its Impact on Their Mental Health and Identity: A Narrative Study, DClin
• Anna McNulty, What is the experience of individual psychological therapy for cisgender women with endometriosis?, DClin
• Chloe Novak, Exploring men's stories of living with fatigue as part of a long-term health condition using photos and interviews, DClin
• Gemma Ashwell, Inclusion health in undergraduate medical education, PhD

Research groups and institutes

• Leeds Institute of Health Sciences
• Psychological and Social Medicine