Life With Chronic Disease: Option B

As a kid my father, who was an editor/journalist, "issued books" for us to read. One of them was One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich. For him this was a window into what was actually going on in Russia. For me, it was my first understanding of resilience and how people survive horrific experiences. Little did I know how this would play into my career and life, to say nothing of the fact that I would work on a biography of the author-Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn: The Writer Who Changed History. 

On Sunday I listened to Krista Tippet's On Being, where she interviewed the authors of Option B: Facing Adversity, Building Resilience and Finding Joy.  Sheryl Sandberg and Adam Grant are an ideal paring to discuss the topic of resilience. Sandberg, who is the COO of Facebook became a widow and single Mom of two young kids when her husband died suddenly and Grant, a psychologist studies resilience. It's one of the best discussions I've heard in a long time of how people survive adversity and unimaginable loss, as well as provide clear ideas of what you can do to help people going through it. So without elaborating, check out this interview. You can download it in many forms so you can listen in the car, walking or while doing the dishes. It's worth the 52 minutes.

When you are through listening, check out the Option B website  for lots more information, learn ways to build resilience, share your story, join a group.

Oh, this isn't depressing-it's inspiring.