the "new normal"

[Laurence Horn]

I was wondering if the first use of this compound or phrase can be
determined.  There's no entry for "new normal" in the OED, and while
it's partly transparent, the specific uses it currently has,
presupposing a recalibration of the standard setting, would seem to
demand an entry.  I first encountered it in the early years of the
new century in connection with the community of those undergoing
cancer treatment, and recognizing the permanent effects of both the
disease and the treatment (particularly chemotherapy) on their
default "settings", but since then I've seen quite a lot in
connection with the economy and with families who recognize that in
the face of external pressures, they have to adjust their
baselines--usually (or always?) in a less favorable direction.  Most
of the first few pages of the many many g-hits for "the new normal"
involve changes resulting from the recession, but am I right in
thinking that the use in the cancer recovery community (or maybe more
generally among those adjusting to changes in their baseline
resulting from disease and treatment) predated this use?

(If there were an entry in the OED, it would slip in around subentry
5 of the noun entries for "normal".)

LH

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