The Resilient Cell

A tiny cell that converts to a ball of trauma and pain, loss, and grief. Poor cell keeps up to stay awake, but chemotherapy kills it every time; surgery changes its shape, structure, and identity. The body tries to keep up with the human cells, but cells are struggling between dying and living. This story is about resilience in the face of cancer.

Resilience is a different power that lets these unhealthy cells fight against the unhealthy ones. Resilience is not denying the truth or letting us cope with the situation. Resilience is about a trait that is in-built in us. But sometimes we need it as an ingredient to make it spicy, tasty, or different.

Resilience does not cure cancer, but it helps the cancer to become weaker and fight our body’s unhealthy aspects. Resilience is from womb to tomb, and if carried, it can create wonders. It is up to the person how they deal with “tumor with humor,” as quoted by Mr. Ramendra Kumar, a cancer warrior.

Resilience helps the survivor cope better and adjust better to painful, tasteless, and fatigue-induced treatment methods.

Resilience is like: “I CAN’T DO IT” vs “I CAN DO IT”, and it’s just a minor difference of a single “T.” Resilience is a belief that strengthens and works like “DUA in DAWA AND DUA.”

Caregivers who are resilient are the ones who teach us to walk and talk and cry and laugh. Resilience is important for caregivers as well. It is like a cherry on the cake if both caregivers and cancer survivors have resilience. It gives us and our family members a ray of hope to work against the devil of cancer.

It is an important tool for doctors as well while their shaky hands are doing the surgery, providing medications, and doing radiation. A treating team is the most resilient one to make a survivor resilient. They become a source of resilience pills in the survivor’s body.

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Author - Dr. Deeksha Chadha
Batch Number / Alumni Status - Batch 2
Qualification - Psy.D. in Clinical Psychology (specialization -sexual medicine and CBT)
Current Occupation / Designation - Assistant Professor and Consultant Clinical Psychologist