This TED Talk was from a man who
was diagnosed with Guillain Barre' syndrome when he was 17 years old and hospitalized
for 4 months. This is an autoimmune disease that attacks the myelin sheath on
your body’s nerves which make them unable to transmit nerve impulses or
messages. Because of his nerves being attacked, this man was unable to move or
swallow and his breathing was limited which eventually led to him being put on
a ventilator along with a feeding tube. This video really made me appreciate all
my little victories I have never thought about as a blessing such as being able
to dress myself, walking at my high school graduation, or just sitting up and
getting out of bed every morning. He talked about how he was one of the only
patients on his floor (mainly for spinal cord injuries) that would ever walk
again. He also said that the sensation of breathing through his nose for the first
time without the ventilator was one of the best sensations of his entire life.
He also mentioned his rehab team multiple times. He stated that his rehab team
(he specifically mentioned OT) made him become himself again and one thing that
really meant a lot for him and he took as a little victory to getting back to
being himself was just being able to play the Wii in his room one day.
After watching this video, I think
I am going to start appreciating what I have more often. He stated that you
never truly learn gratitude for something so little until you can’t do it
anymore. I think it is super important to reflect on all the blessings we have.
Right now, going through grad school is HARD. Often times I think about how
hard I have it, but realistically I am one of the most blessed people on this
planet. I am pursuing a career I absolutely love, I am healthy, and I am surrounded
by an amazing support system of faculty and peers. When I think of all that I have
and then compare it so someone like this man giving the TED Talk or the
hundreds of kids in the hospitals just in Memphis, all those pity thoughts for
myself go away. I remember that its because of this career that I get to help
those individuals going through the darkest days of their lives and make them a
little brighter.
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