Yesterday I introduced the story of Dr. Brad Berk, a remarkable man who seemed to accept devastating losses quickly. While lying on the gravel waiting for the ambulance, he said he'd be OK as long as he could think and talk, breathe without a ventilator and use a wheelchair on his own.
Dr. Berk had the discipline to stay calm and not panic immediately after the accident. And he had the equanimity to reflexively accept great losses and to hope to hold onto that which he holds most dear: his work and his family.
Since his spinal cord was severely injured, but not severed, his doctors can't predict with certainty how much function he'll regain. Berk has been embracing the uncertainty that has accompanied his recovery:
"I am working toward being the most I can be....[Since] it is not clear what that means...I work as hard as I can every day: to go as far as I can go."
As his condition improves, his hopes shift. After he was weaned from the ventilator, Berk declared a victory when he could lift his left arm hand high enough to scratch his nose.
Healthy Survivors embrace uncertainty in healing ways. As each hope is fulfilled, they find new hopes that motivate them to keep pushing as long as there is uncertainty - and hence possibility - about the extent of recovery possible.
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