Resilience is, in general terms, the ability to cope with stressful events without becoming overwhelmed by them. I know a little boy, who this week, went to the dentist to have a baby tooth extracted because the adult one had grown in behind it. It wasn’t necessarily causing any problems, but the dentist wanted it out.
There was a bit of tension in the days leading up to procedure day, so on the morning of the dental visit, I told him that if it was just too scary, that we could figure out another way to get the tooth out. As much as I want to develop resilience in my children, I’m aware that DMD seems to cause heightened anxiety levels, and I didn’t want him unnecessarily petrified and feeling like there weren’t other options. He responded by telling me that he was getting it out that day and nothing would stop him. He realised that while he couldn’t necessarily decide what was going to happen to him, he had decided how he was going to react to it.
I learned something that morning.
Imagine my pride a few hours later when I got the text telling me he’d had the tooth taken out and that he’d refused the local anaesthetic! Can someone spell bravery for me! These sorts of developments are becoming more common and it got me thinking that despite what he’s missing in his dystrophin gene, he more than makes up for in other areas.
I’ve noticed it a lot in people with DMD - they make do with what they’ve got. So, let’s make sure they’ve got a lot.
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