Here we present you 10 examples of resilience Of people who have managed to overcome their problems and learn from them thanks to this capacity. They will encourage anyone to overcome the obstacles they have in their life and to become stronger emotionally.
Resilience has been characterized in the last years to receive a great interest on the part of the society and little by little it is becoming a very popular term at the present time.
Surely we have all had some moment in our life that has been hard and in which we have had to be resilient.
What do we mean by resilience?
The Resilience Can be understood as"the coping process with heart-rending, stressful or challenging events in a way that provides the individual with additional protection and coping skills than those he had prior to the rupture that resulted from the event"(Neieger, Jensen and Jumpfer 1990, quoted in Iglesias, 2006).
From this definition we can extract, that although the person is involved in a complicated situation, is able to get something positive from the tragedy experienced.
Examples of resilient people
Here are 10 examples of people who have proven themselves to be resilient due to illnesses they have overcome or situations they have gone through in their lives.
1. Malala Yousafzai
Surely you will know the case of Malala Since it was very sounded in the media in the year 2012, in which it is almost killed by the terrorist group TTP.
Malala is a girl of Pakistani origin known for being a great advocate of women's education, as well as women's rights. At the age of 12 he began writing on a blog how he was going to class clandestinely and claiming that he was entitled to education.
This fact and the ideals for which she fought was what led her to want to be killed by the terrorist group TTP in 2012. At the time of what happened, Malala was in a school bus that traveled by the Swat Valley in Pakistan, when two members of the TTP fired her with a rifle reaching into the skull and neck.
Subsequently, she had to undergo several reconstructive surgeries, due to the large wounds she suffered, and even had to incorporate a titanium plate in the skull and a hearing device in the left ear.
Months after his assassination attempt, he was discharged and continued with rehabilitation.
His assassination attempt did not stop Malala from continuing and forming and fighting for women's rights to education. In the year 2013, she was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize being the youngest woman in history, since at that time, she was only 16 years old. That same year, she was also awarded the Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Conscience.
In 2014 he also received the Manuel Broseta Convivencia Prize and the Nobel Peace Prize. She is still struggling for the rights of children and for an equal education between men and women.
2. Adriana Macias
Of Mexican origin, Adriana was born without arms because of a problem of genetic origin. Therefore, from very early ages had to learn to use their feet as if a few hands were treated.
Although his parents always insisted that he use prosthetics, Adriana never knew how to adapt to them. The doctors always told him that it was impossible for him to lead a normal and autonomous life only with the handling of his feet.
When he reached adolescence everything turned black because he lived in a world where everyone had arms. At that age many negative thoughts came to his head, such as that he could not marry because no one was going to ask for his hand. However, she learned to make fun of herself and with the great support of her parents she became an independent and autonomous woman.
On the other hand, he studied law, speech and writing. From the age of 18 he is traveling around the world giving talks and talks about motivation and improvement. In addition, he has written two books and based on practice he is almost able to turn his big toes to write, make-up, grab things...
Although life has not been a rose color for her, she is completely happy because she has fulfilled one of her dreams, to be a mother and to have a family and that there has not been any disability that will take her away.
3. Stephen Hawking
Due to a degenerative disease that has suffered for more than thirty years, Hawking Is paralyzed from head to toe, making him sit in a wheelchair. On the other hand, due to a tracheotomy that damaged his vocal cords it is impossible to communicate through the voice.
This makes you a totally dependent person in your day to day. However this has not prevented him to study physics or even to be a doctor despite the fact that doctors only gave him three months of life because of his illness.
With these impediments he has written with the help of the fingers of one hand, who are the only ones who can move his entire body, several books and is currently one of the most recognized scientists.
He currently travels the world lecturing, is a teacher and is married. It communicates through a word processor that is built into your wheelchair. Instead of living as a victim and self-pitying self-struggled to be positive despite the circumstances and fulfill their dreams.
4. Nuria del Saz
At first glance we may seem like a normal presenter, but if we stop for a few moments we will see that she is blind and has been the first person with a visual disability to arrive in the world of television as far away as she.
She studied Information Sciences and is a writer. With only 14 years it began in the mass media in a station that she had created herself. Before finishing his studies, already was working for the Channel South TV, a task that also combined with gatherings, among other activities.
She has received awards as one of the"Clara Campoamor"awards in 2005 or"Young Journalism in 2006. Also in 2012 she was awarded by the Association of Persons with Disabilities El Saliente de Almería.
He has written several books of poetry, one in 2006 with the title Alma Atrapada, the second in 2011"Intimate Paradise"and in the year 2013 presented a book with narrative style, A blind in Manhattan.
Currently, he continues to work to show that visual impairment is not a determining factor in a person's life and that everyone can accomplish everything that is proposed in life.
5. Pablo Pineda
Pablo has been recognized for being the first European with Down Syndrome to finish a university degree, specifically teaching. Currently, the career of psychopedagogy is completed, an activity that is carried out jointly with other activities such as: presentation and acting, writing as well as motivational lectures.
Getting to a university degree has not been easy for him, since he had to fight very hard to get to do his compulsory studies in a public school and even to continue with the baccalaureate or enter the university itself.
In 2013 he published a book"The challenge to learn", in 2015 he published his second book"Children with Special Abilities: Parent Handbook". On the other hand, due to its interpretation and appearance in the film"I, too"won in 2009 the Silver Shell to the best actor in the San Sebastian Film Festival.
At the moment, it is dedicated to give lectures with the unique objective to eliminate the prejudices that exist in the society towards the people who have some disability and thus also to increase the respect towards them. In addition, he also works in the Adecco Foundation giving talks and doing tasks with the same purpose.
It is characterized by being a positive and struggling person and without complexes and proud of being Down Syndrome.
6. Albert Espinosa
He studied industrial engineering, although at the moment he is scriptwriter, writer, actor and director of cinema. On the other hand, also collaborates in the newspaper of Catalonia and makes conferences of motivation and personal improvement.
At the age of 13 he had to face an osteosarcoma that led to his losing one leg, giving him only months of life at the time. Later, at age 16, they had to remove a lung and part of a liver at age 18.
He has spent 10 years of his life in a hospital, which has led him to be a great source of inspiration for his works in general. He lives as if he were going to die tomorrow and does not make plans with more than a month of duration.
He is still working as a screenwriter and film director, as well as lecturing and even studying medicine, his main motivational phrase:"What is sad is not living intensely."
7. Alison Lapper
He was born in Burton, England with legs shorter than usual and without arms. In his childhood and because of his disability was abandoned by his parents when he was four months and later divorced.
From a very young age doctors have tried to bring artificial arms and legs without success, since they did not make her feel good and she was not comfortable. He does not know his older sister and spent most of his childhood in a center for people with physical disabilities.
Her adolescence was very hard as she wanted to be like the others, but little by little she was realizing that she was different. At 19 she graduated in Fine Arts and later became a renowned painter, a hobby she had practiced since the age of three with the help of her head and mouth.
It has been awarded by the Member of the British Empire (MBE) that the same queen gave her. Throughout her life they have always rejected her and even her partner abandoned her when she was pregnant. However, she is currently considered a happy woman and eager to strive to achieve her goals.
8. Piermario Morosini
He was an Italian soccer player who played as a midfielder. He died only 26 years after living a very tragic story. At the age of 15, he lost his mother and was in charge of his father, who also died in 2003 with his brother, the latter because of his suicide.
His life, although marked by tragedy, did not prevent him from being a great football player and enjoying a spirit of struggle and unparalleled vividness. His brother, took his life by losing his mother and father leaving him alone in charge of his sister with disabilities.
It was characterized by being a very happy person in spite of everything that had lived. He died in 2012 slumped on the grass while playing despite attempts to revive him. So that his sister was not left alone his friend, Antonio Di Natale decided to take care of his sister.
9. Enhamed
He is considered one of the best Paralympic athletes in history. At the age of only 8 he went blind and had to go to study in a center of Madrid of the ONCE from Las Palmas de Gran Canaria.
He wanted to be independent and that's how he discovered swimming. It started being a hobby to such an extent that they became hours of training, thanks to the pool got the strength to face their blindness and go out into the street.
He has won four Olympic golds at the Beijing Paralympic Games in 2008, four golds and one silver at the World Championships in Eindhoven in 2010, five medals at the Berlin European in 2011 and three medals at the Paralympic Games and the list is endless .
He gives lectures on self-improvement and motivation and even wrote a book. He is still facing new challenges and his blindness does not condition his day to day.
Mark Inglis
He kept his family working as a guide and teacher of people who wanted to learn how to climb mountains. In 1982 he was trapped with his friend as they attempted to reach the summit of Mount Cook in New Zealand.
Due to Storm Mark, he was trapped in a place of difficult access for the rescuers so he was about to die. As a result of the 14 days he was trapped, his feet became frozen meat, so he had to cut his legs up over his knees.
After a while they put on prosthetics and, without knowing how to walk with them properly, ventured to climb the mountain. Although he had no legs he was still a fighter, until he finally managed to climb the one that almost killed him 10 years earlier in 2002.
After this feat he continued to climb mountains, even on one occasion he was injured one of the prostheses when he tried to climb the Himalayas, whose summit came with effort and energy.
Nowadays, besides continuing to climb summits, he gives lectures on motivation and self-improvement.
This is only 10 cases of resilences worth mentioning, but surely you know another story of a famous or close person who also nurtured life, would you tell us in our comment board?
References
- Iglesias, E. B. (2006). Resilience: definition, characteristics and utility of the concept. Journal of psychopathology and clinical psychology, 11 (3), 125-146.
- Forés, A., & Grané, J. (2008). Resilience. Grow from adversity.