Whatever Happens, Happens

The TED Talk How Did I Come Out of Guillan-Barré Syndrome given by Shruti Jain talks about how she realized what her passion was from experiencing this condition. She starts off by talking about how everything was normal, and then, one day she had Guillan-Barré Syndrome (GBS). Her eight days in the ICU helped her to discover her passion. She talked very little about her physical experience in the hospital as most of it was about her mindset, but at one point Shruti mentions that it felt like any breath could be her last. Despite this, Shruti was constantly thinking about others during her ICU stay. She thought about her parents and how they would react to seeing her in such a poor condition. Because of this, she tried to show the best side of her because her parents related their reaction to whatever outlook she had. She would also smile at patients to share the positivity. In one situation, she noticed that another patient's monitor seemed off and alerted the doctor to it as well. She also talked about her willpower. Because of the strong, willful persona she gave off, the doctor allowed her ventilator to be removed one day earlier than planned. She continued to get better day by day. At the end of her hospital stay, Shruti says that she realized her passion. She wanted to become a philanthropist, not a doctor. She wanted to be able to heal others with love instead of just healing their body. She wanted to be able to impart strength on patients and enjoyed making the doctors laugh. At the end of the day, she leaves with the message that whatever happens, happens for a reason. 

I chose this TED Talk because I was interested to hear a person's experience with GBS. I thought it was interesting, however, that her condition was not the only thing that she talked about. While she did mention it briefly to explain what it was, she focused on the mindset she had during recovery and how it impacted who she became. 

I think that understanding how a patient is feeling mentally is a large part of OT, so this gave me more insight into how patients and clients might think. It is also important to remember that each person is different. Not everyone may have the same mindset and could be more negative or ambivalent towards their recovery process. 

TEDx Talks. (2015 September 15). How did I come out of Guillan-Barré Syndrome | Shruti Jain | TEDxDhilwarasolon [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1oWcRH8daf8