Growth in the Unexpected
Have you ever felt paralyzed by the unexpected? Something happens that you weren’t expecting and you aren’t really sure what to do or what to think or where to go from there. Discouraged, unstable, anxious, fear, unknown…all can come with the unknown and unexpected.
These are all things we felt when we first found out that Hezi would be born with a cleft lip. There were so many unknowns, so many uncertainties that the doctors could not clarify for us until he was born.
And now, most recently, Sophie was diagnosed with strabismus, something I had never heard of until we started noticing a strange occurrence with one of her eyes. We took her to the ophthalmologist and found out that because one of her eyes goes inward periodically, she would need to get glasses. When most kids her age brains can adjust to focus on something far to something close, hers has to work twice as hard to do it. So, the glasses should allow her brain to recorrect this in a few years. Although the diagnosis was what we were expecting, the treatment was much different. But, we are hopeful that the glasses will do their job and will fix her eyes for the rest of her life!
SUPER SOPHIE!!
When she first put on the glasses, she said “I’m a Super Hero!”
<–Showing off her Muscles — We told her that wearing her glasses made her muscles bigger 😀
^^^Hezi wanted to join in the fun!
Daddy and I joined in for dinner, too!
But, it can be difficult when it feels like something hits you out of nowhere and it can be easy to get stuck in a rut when the unexpected happens. Although not always a simple task, here are a few ways to find growth in these times of trials.
- Find a good support system
Our family and friends have been such a great support – giving encouragement, reminding us of truth and the blessing that we are surrounded with and always being up for a fun idea (see below).
2. Trust that God is in control
This diagnosis was not a surprise to God. He knew that this was going to be a part of Sophie’s story before she was even born. So, now, it is my job to trust that His plans are better than mine (Why is that so difficult sometimes???) and believe that He made my girl (and me, too) strong enough to deal with life when the unexpected hits us.
3. Count Your Blessings
Although the diagnosis was hard to hear, there were a lot of positives that came out of it, too. The doctor checked the inside of her eyes and said they are very healthy- a huge blessing since an issue like that could’ve resulted in a need for surgery. Also, he was very hopeful that this treatment plan will resolve the issue in a few years!
4. Find ways to have fun
We found some inexpensive pretend glasses that we passed out to cousins and friends. I asked them to each send a pictures that I am going to print out so that Sophie sees all of her favorite people wearing glasses, too! I am hopeful that if Sophie’s sees these special people in the glasses, she will be more excited to wear hers, too!
Since the glasses make Sophie “Super Sophie”, her friends and cousins became super heroes with their glasses, too! This has become her collage of “SUPER FRIENDS”!
Having her friends and cousins be apart of this journey has made it so much more fun already! She LOVES her friends and her cousins, so it was really special for her!
Cracker Glasses to make lunch more fun!
How do you best grow when something unexpected hits?
