TED Talk: In our baby’s illness: A life lesson

Throughout my service learning, I think one of the most important lessons I have learned is that if there is a child in the hospital with a chronic illness or long term disease, it does not only affect the child individually. The illness affects the entire family, most importantly the parents. Some parents become stressed, depressed, and anxious with a hospitalized child and it cannot go unnoticed, which is why I have posted my original infographic below on the stress levels of parents with hospitalized children. Additionally, I discovered a TED Talk that displays a wonderful message related to this. It is the story of a young couple, Roberto D’ Angelo and Francesca Fedli, as they cope with their 2 and a half year old son, Mario, after he had a perinatal stroke. They talk about the depression that resulted from this illness and how they felt that “the only real product of [their] life, at the end, was a failure. And you know, it was not a failure for [themselves] in itself, but it was a failure that will impact his full life” (Robert D’Angelo). They always discuss how their entire lives will be affected by his illness, and touch on obvious obstacles that parents with ill children will have to face: will we be able to work and will he ever be normal?

            It is heartbreaking to hear such stories. However, this story of Mario is a perfect example of something parents may tell me at the RMH Family Room. Hearing this TED Talk is extremely beneficial for me, and for all of us because it brings attention to the tough times those parents with these children face. Roberto and Francesca also explain how they coped with the situation and raised themselves out of the depression. They describe how they treat Mario as a normal kid, and they prompt him to do adventurous and fun, normal activities with them. They stopped “looking at him as a problem” and started treating him as a normal, two-year-old son (Roberto D’Angelo).

            At the end of the TED Talk, Mario is brought out on stage and looks like any other little boy. This talk is so inspiring for all and is important because it makes the troubles of the parents known, coordinates with the information in the infographic below  and encourages everyone to look at life a little differently.

https://www.ted.com/talks/roberto_d_angelo_francesca_fedeli_in_our_baby_s_illness_a_life_lesson?language=en