Title: Mothers’ experiences of wellbeing and coping while living with rheumatoid arthritis: A
qualitative study
Version: 2 Date: 13 Jan 2022
Reviewer's report:
General overview: This article is strongest in the results section. It is clear that the researchers
put a lot of care into their data collection and in representing their study participants in the report.
The introduction (in particular), methods, and (to a lesser extent) discussion could use some
refining. Keeping the reader engaged with a convincing narrative flow in the paper is necessary.
I recommend Lingard's "problem-gap-hook" model () as a useful tool for crafting a paper that is
more centered on the experience, questions and concerns of the reader than that of the researcher.
Specific comments:
*Bottom of page 3 - "There is limited evidence that RA can affect the performance of mothering
roles due to pain, fatigue and impaired movement" - this does not tell your reader much about
why this matters. The last sentence of the paragraph ("no study has examined mothers’ subjective
accounts of the coping strategies...") gives a better sense of why this was being written. I would
suggest leading with that instead.
*Bottom of page 4 - "There is a need for further in-depth research to examine how women with
RA negotiate cultural expectations of motherhood, including implications for women’s maternal
subjectivities and wellbeing" -  It is unclear to the reader whether the author is reporting this
research or already proposing that there is another gap that needs to be addressed. If the former,
change the phrasing to show that your research addresses this. If it is the latter, leave out until
the discussion/conclusion.
*First sentence of page 5 - "This recognizes..." has too many ideas in it, please break this up
into a few different sentences. Take your time
*Page 5 - "A critical realist epistemology... was adopted." I would suggest not writing this part
in passive voice, but instead frame this as a choice made by the researchers for specific reasons.
Convey to the reader why this was important to addressing the research question, give some
sense of why the choice was made. Think of the part explaining your theoretical position as part
of the methods, and it explain it that way (consider including this in the methods instead).
*Page 5 - "A qualitative design was adopted..." Consider changing this from passive voice, and
being more specific about the kind of qualitative methodology used, perhaps with a citation or
two.  Further "qualitative transcripts were analyzed..." is too vague,  should read something like
"the text of interview transcripts..."
*Page 7 - Results, first sentence, "...(average age of 7.7 years)" Is there something missing here?
*Page 15 - Just a general stylistic note, try not to begin a sentence with "however".
*Page 16 - Wondering if it is just "cultural expectations," or if there is anything more 'material' in
the division of labour when it comes to childcare/parenting that precipitates those expectations?
*Top of page 18 - "...less physical activities..." should be "fewer physical activities" or "less
physical activity"
*Page 18 - the part about "support" could be re-framed, or at least specified for the reader. There
are moments in your description that convey quite a lot of importance, but they seem to be a
little bit buried, and not front and centre for the reader. For example,  it seems to encompass
social isolation, inability to work leading to financial hardship, and help with caregiving tasks.
Much of this could be treated as material aspects of the experience you're describing. For the
sake of crafting a narrative, I would suggest presenting this kind of stuff first, followed with the
parts about the psychological affects of cultural expectations.