Wednesday, December 30, 2015

My philosophy for a happy life | Sam Berns | TEDxMidAtlantic





Have you ever had to deal with a member of your family suffering from an illness?  What challenges would that present?  Have you ever known a class member who suffers from a debilitating illness?  Can you put yourself in their shoes?  Are you compassionate?  What is the worst possible illness for you to imagine?

37 comments:

Unknown said...

The only type of illness I have ever had in my family would be cancer. This made it hard because the family had to sacrifice many things to try to provide help for the family member. everyone also had to go through testing and all that unnessisary testing. I don't know of any of my classmates suffering from a debilitating illness. if I was to put myself in the shoes of a person with an illness, it would change how I see the world. It would make life such more valuable. I am compassionate. The worst illness for me to imagine is most definitely cancer.

brailey Gouzd
4/5

Unknown said...

I have never really had a serious illness in my family, but my neighbor who is really close to me had cancer in his lungs. It cause stress to come because we were always worried he would die and if he was how much longer would he be alive. I don't know of any of my classmates of having a debilitating disease. I would not be able to survive such a painful disease which you cannot guarantee survival. I am compassionate. I think smallpox is probably the most scary and painful disease.

Unknown said...

Yes I have had a few relatives who have suffered from cancer. It would be harder to do what you like to do. I have never known a class member who suffers from a debilitating illness that I know of. If I were in their shoes I would spend a lot more time with the people who matter most. I would try to see the world more differently. I am compassionate.I really don't know what illness would be the worst.

Tamara Taylor 1/2nd period

Unknown said...


My aunt had cancer. At the time we I was not particularly close to her, but I`m closer to her now. It was a very stressful time for her sister (my other Aunt) and my uncle and cousins. I could never imagine having a debilitating disease. I`m the kind of person who hides their true emotions and (mostly) likes to be independent. Having a disease would most likely take away my independence as others might have to do things for me all the time. It would be embarrassing to have to ask for help. I think one of the worst diseases would be Lyme disease. One of my grandmothers friends and a speaker at an event I attended is suffering from Lyme disease she told us about what it was like and even shared her personal diaries with us. She had to go to Florida almost immediately to get treatment without even a chance to pack. She rarely gets to visit her home. She says the treatment made the huge army veterans cry. The other condition I think would be the worst is paralysis. It would hate not to be able to move a muscle and be almost entirely dependent on some one else. I would like to say I am a compassionate person.

Unknown said...

My mom was had Melanoma bad about 8 years ago. She always tells me not to abuse your skin from sun. She used to live in Myrtle Beach and tanned forever. That's why I am so pale because my parents don't want me to be the same, and with light skin and blue eyes and blonde hair, your chances of Melanoma go up. Also if a parent has it your chance goes up. I put a lot of sun screen on and don't go in the sun without it. I was real found when my mom had it so I didn't remember even knowing about it and having sympathy because my mind hadn't developed yet. If I was older when it would've happened I would felt a lot of sympathy and felt really bad. I have never really known a classmate that has had a bad illness or anything. I am a compassionate person and I like to help people. My mom told me this story about when she was coming home from her appointment that told her she had Melanoma and she saw out of know where in the sky, perfect hand together like a cup. She was healed from this Melanoma. I'd say the worst illness I could imagine is being paralyzed.

Unknown said...

My family usually doesn't have many problems when it comes to health, but one time, my mom was sick. I don't remember what was wrong, I was only in 4th grade. I just remember her being in the hospital for about a week. It left us handicapped at home. No one cooked or cleaned for about a week. My dad could've done it, but he was always doing other things for us. We lost the TV remote for about three days because we dropped it in the cereal box and didn't realize. I also have friends who are not only physically sick, but also mentally sick. I can relate. I know its hard for people, but just like a bad cold, it gets better.

Anonymous said...

I have had many family members have illness. My grandma on my dads side had MS which stands for multiple sclerosis it's a disease where it slowly weakens your muscles. Now I wasn't alive when she had it but my dad talks about it and say when she got diagnosed they had to change many things in their daily schedule and they had to not be sad about it because it would make her sad. Also my uncle right now is living with pancreatic cancer. Even though I think I could put myself in his shoes I really don't think I could. I am compassionate about it. I'm not really sure what the worst illness would be but if I had to choose it would be cancer or being paralyzed. Or what Sam Berns has I am compassionate towards him because it must be hard knowing you can't do things but also its amazing how he can overcome that and be positive.

Unknown said...

The only person in my family that had a illness that I know of was my grandfather Gene Parish who had colon cancer. He had two rounds of chemotherapy and one experimental treatment. I have never known classmates that have illnesses like Sam Burns or my grandfather. It would be especially hard for me to imagine being in someone else's shoes because my grandfather passed away when I was about four years old. I couldn't feel compassionate about it because I was only four so I didn't understand the situation until a couple years later. the worst illness I could imagine would be any kind of illness that would restrict movement like being paralyzed or something like what Sam Burns has.

Keyonna Hilson said...

I have a lot of serious illnesses in both sides of my family. There is a huge eye disease on my moms side that makes them go blind. Also cancer and breathing problems. A lot of my family has diabetes on my dads side. I have a good chance of getting it myself. I am very compassionate. I always end up in some type of situation were I have to comfort someone. I guess I have gotten pretty good at it because I have a few people that always come to me for comfort and advice. I think that the worst disease you could have would be cancer any type period because I saw the way that my cousin was suffering and it sucked.

Unknown said...

Well my grandmother was recently diagnosed with lung cancer. She had to go through tons of sergeries we were certain she was going to pass but hopefully she didn't. But she is still a smoker and we tried our hardest to get her to stop. But she just won't we pray she won't have to go back into sergery but you never know what is in storage for her.

Unknown said...

The only member in my family that suffered from an illness would be my grandpa. It was a depressing period of time, everyone was very worried. Each member of my relatives came to visit him. Cheering and encouraging him to not lose hope. Unfortunately, half a year later, he passed away. I don’t know any classmates that had been through debilitating illness. However, if I were them, I would probably do everything I’ve always wanted to do. For example, I wouldn’t waste my time lying in bed. Instead, I’ll experience the things I’ve been interested in. Every illness seems sad to me. So, there is no worst illness in my opinion. All of them are negative.

Lucy Chen Period 6/7

Unknown said...

Yes, I have had a family member suffer from an illness. My uncle died from bone cancer and 2 heart attacks and my grandma had a few health problems that kelp getting worse. She died from those , but they were also natural causes. My other grandma died from ovarian cancer before I was born. Some challenges of that would be you have to watch them suffer through that. I do not know of a class member who has suffered from an illness. No, I can not put myself in their shoes. I consider myself compassionate. The worst illness I could ever imagine would have to be cancer.

Kaylee Elsey 6/7 Period

Unknown said...

When I was a baby, around the age of two, my grandmother received the news that she had breast cancer. I don't remeber this because of how young I was, but it affected my mother a ton. Luckily she made a full recovery, going through chemo and such, but throughout the struggle, there where hospital bills and scary imaginations on what would happen in the future... Whether she'd love or not... Thankfully, my grandparents are wealthy and where fortunate enough to make sure the bills did not affect them... My mother still tells stories on how scared she was during this time...

Unknown said...

Our family has had more than it's share of diseases! My Great-Aunt has dealt with MS since well before I was born, my father has been affected by an auto-immune disorder (sarcoidosis) since 2005 and my grandpa was diagnosed with Parkinson's Disease just before my parents got married in 2000.

The hardest one on our family has been my grandpa's Parkinson's. It is a degenerative disease and we have had to watch as it has gotten worse and worse over the years. Two years ago, caring for him became to much for my Grandma to handle and he has been in a nursing home ever since. My grandma visits him every day, and any time we are in Buffalo, we go visit him and try to spend as much time as we can with him. We are going to see them over spring break.

Having family members with diseases has taught us to cherish every moment in life and to be thankful for what we have.

Jared Stern
Period 4/5

Unknown said...

When I was about 8, I learned that my grandfather had cancer. Being an 8 year old, you dont stress that too much because you cant quite gradp whats going on. Later on in life is when it hit me the hardest. My grandfather had died due to a growing tumor and lung cancer. I was in his retirement home room with my mom, and we decided to leave. 20 minutes later we received a call... He was dead.
I dont know anybody with an illness. I am a strong person so I know I could live through it if put in that situation. However, I know it would be tough. I am a very compassionate person, Especially in sports. I take pride in the things I do, but I am also compassionate over friends and family.

Unknown said...
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Unknown said...
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Blogger Mackenzie S. said...
I've dealt with many illnesses in my family. My father has heart disease and he had a heart attack back in October 2014. It was very hard for my family to go through that, and paying for the bills was almost impossible. My father had three arteries blocked 99% which left him with 1% chance of living, but being healthy and staying active pulled him through and he defeated his own genetics. His father or my grandfather, also had heart disease and died in his early 30s. It was very hard for my father and my aunt to go through. My Grammy on the other side of my family also had many immune problems and many different illnesses that caused her to be unstable. It was hard to take care of it we always did and we would see her in the hospital anytime we could. Illnesses are definitely something that we wish we could escape but we really can't. I really don't know of any classmates that have been suffering from a serious illness, but I do know that children have many different diseases such as cancer that can be very fatal and it breaks my heart that people have to go through that. If I put myself in their shoes I think I would be depressed all the time and I wouldn't be able to handle it. It is unbelievable that they get up every morning and still show happiness that I would never be able to do. The illness that I'd be the most afraid of would be anything fatal because it would put a lot of stress on myself and my family and an uneasy tension on everyone. My family and I are very compassionate and we all are thankful for everything we have and are very appreciative.

Gabriellakoski22 said...

My family has had to deal with many illnesses. My Nonnie which is my mom’s mom is dealing with MS. MS stands for Multiple Sclerosis. It is a disease in which the immune system eats away at the protective covering of the nerves. She cannot walk at all and she can only move her head. My Nonnie was diagnosed with MS when I was 1. I am the only grandchild that has seen her walk all by herself without using a walker or being pushed around in a wheelchair. By the time my sister was born she had to use a walker, and when my cousins were born she was in a wheelchair, and now she is in her bed and cannot get up. If I could put myself in her shoes, I would but I don’t know what I would do living like that. I am really compassionate about it because I love my Nonnie with all my heart. If I could have anything in the world I would want for her to be normal and to not have to live with MS anymore. I think MS is the worst illness because I see almost every day how my Nonnie lives with such a horrible disease and acts like nothing is wrong. I don’t really talk about her much because I know if I did I would get really upset and it makes my mom really sad.

Alex Morris said...

My family has had some illnesses over the years. My Pap had a disease that didn't allow him to walk. He had this for as long as I can remember. One night we got a call that he had passed away. Later my mom was diagnosed with the same disease. It disabled her. She cannot walk now. This particular disease breaks down muscles. I do not know what this disease is called but I have been informed it is very rare. I do know some classmates that have illnesses. I do not think I could put myself in there shoes. It would be really rough. They are all brave. This should not happen to people. The worst illness I can think of is an illness that would disable me. I could not stand it. I don't know how my mom does it. She is strong.

Frazier said...

Zach Frazier
My mom has P.O.T.S, Dysautonmia, AOGH Deficiency, Iron Deficiency, Magnesium Deficiency, Low T3 Syndrome, Loopis, Thrombophilia, and 19 other diseases and disorders. My brother has Autism. My dad's parents both have diabetes, however he does not. I am very lucky not to have any illnesses. There are so many challenges my family members face. I really don't want to describe them. Most people cannot understand. I do know classmates with debilitating diseases. I cannot put my self in their shoes. I am compassionate. The worst illnesses I can think of is all the illnesses my mom has.

Unknown said...

My nana had breast cancer but she kept fighting through it and she is still here today. That would bring up alot of challenges you are fighting for your life with that disease. It is life changing. I dont know what kind of illness Akira suffers from but I know that it is life changing and I am very compassionate for her. I try to bring her up everyday and make her as happy as she can be. And I think I do that very well. I have known Akira since we were in 1st grade we have always seen each other everyday at school. And I love to see her smile. That means I know that she is having a good day. I think the worst illness would be amnesia because you lose every sense of family and you can't remember anyone or who they were to you. And you cant even remember who you are or what you have done in your life and what accomplishments you have achieved in your lifetime. Thats the worst illness I can think of there is probably more painful illnesses in the world but you can still remember family in those situations.



Broderick Rohrbaugh 1st and 2nd

Unknown said...

I personally haven't had any family members with any illnesses. One if my moms good friends was fighting breast cancer about two years ago. My mom visited her like everyday in the hospital. But a year later she died and my was really distrot for a couple months. It made me sad seeing her like that so it was kinda hard for the both of us.

Unknown said...

My grandma had breast cancer but it was not the bad. But now she has to carry around a portable oxygen tank to help her breath. But I has a friend that has a illness. He has type 1 diabetes. It is not that bad and it does not seem to bother him very much. I know that he lives a very happy life with his friends and family. I just hope that I never get a real bad illness.

Unknown said...

I do have someone in my family that has an illness, and that person is me. I have a gluten allergy that I have to live with for the rest of my life. This illness prevents me from eating anything that has wheat, barley, rye, and oats. Whole wheat foods are good for the natural growing human, but for me I cannot consume these foods and be fine. If I eat a small amount of gluten I will get sever stomach pains, and cramping. If this happens I will have to go to the hospital and be quickly treated. Although, there are many illnesses that are way more severe than mine. There is a classmate that has a debilitating illness called cerebral palsy. She has difficulties moving, and doing many activities. Just like Sam Berns she looks over her disability and worries about the things she can do. I do not want to imagine what cerebral palsy feels like. I think one of the worst disabilities would be to be totally paralyzed. This illness prevents someone from moving at any point in time.
Franklin Bush Jr.
4/5 period

Unknown said...

I have a great aunt with MS and she has to have a nurse around the house. She has to be bathed and fed, even pushed around. I am compassionate. I coundnt put myself and their shoes because it being able to do what everyone else is doing and their having fun would suck. I could imagine being totally paralyzed on my whole body.

Unknown said...

I have had illness in my family. I watched my great grampa go through a lot. He was sick all the time and was in the hospital , I would have to take care of him sometimes. I don't know any of my friends that have had an illness before. I couldn't imagine being in those people shoes, and going through what they do. Also my grandmother died from breast cancer, and my great grandmother was diagnosed with great cancer 2 weeks ago, and my pap had a throat cancer. So it's really scary. I hope no one else in my family has cancer.

Madison Posey said...

My papaw Posey has a illness called hunningtons desease. It's pretty rough on him. I can't tell what he says, he can't walk, it's hard for him to eat and he is always in the hospital for blood transfusions. On my grandparents anniversary he was in the hospital. I don't know what I would do if I had this desease. It's pretty bad.

Unknown said...

My uncle's Dad has bone cancer. I'm not sure of his actual age but he is almost 90 years old. On Easter Sunday he looked very bead and was very skinny because of the cancer. He was diagnosed with it over a year ago. But if you know some body with cancer it can sometimes be cured depending on what type of cancer it is and how early they find it in your body. The cancer also causes him to not walk or move sometimes because of how weak your bones get and how painful it is. You can also die of bone cancer. It usually starts in one bone and spreads to the next one . Many of his doctors say that he might not have much longer. Also some. Days he does terrible and some, days he does great. Luckily the last time I went to go see him he was doing better than usual.

Unknown said...

My grandmother has diabetes and it's pretty hard on her. Over New Years she was in the hospital and she a close to a stroke. Diabetes runs in my family almost all of my grandpas and grandmas have it but my other great grandmother Grandma Betty died from cancer we didn't know she had it until years after the virus was in her but by that time it was to late the virus had eaten all over and in her bones so there was no way to get it out. She fought it for a couple months but eventually she died. This was one of the roughest times for me because she taught me so many things how to bake cookies, how to count, and even how to walk. She used to have this old clock that would ding every hour 12 times and every time it would ding we would count a number together now I have this clock and it still works to this day. I hope this never happens again.

Unknown said...

A lot of my family suffers from illness. They tough it out and get through it. I don't know a classmate with sicknesses. I could put my self in their shoes because I wouldn't want them to be sick. I am compassionate. Cancer is the worst form of illness I could imagine

Cindy Maina said...

Have you ever had to deal with a member of your family suffering from an illness? What challenges would that present? Have you ever known a class member who suffers from a debilitating illness? Can you put yourself in their shoes? Are you compassionate? What is the worst possible illness for you to imagine?
Yes I have had a family member suffer from an illness who needed up passing away later. It would be very hard to recover from someone who you really love suffer from an illness. I do not know any class members who have an illness. It would be very embarrassing and challenging to have an illness and come to school everyday and work hard. The worst possible illness for me would be Cancer. Getting Cancer is one of my biggest fears.

Unknown said...

My grandma got cancer I don't know when but my parents never told me about it and I had to find out at the age of six what cancer was. That is the only incident that I know of. I would never be able to put myself in there shoes. I have had my 2 year old cat put down because when ever he had to have surgery on his leg he ended up getting a blood clot and we had to but him down and he was suffering from an illness and my older cat died this year because of some form of cancer. Cancer is the worst because when you find out it hits you like a bullet and you can't describe the feeling. It is scaring knowing that you have a disease that has a 8 out of 10 percent chance that it will kill you. It is honestly a sad thing and it can happen to anybody.

Alexus Williams said...

I haven't really been sick but.... Both my grandmas suffered from cancer one was 5 weeks ago the other was a before I was born. My sisters dad died of bad blood sugar a year ago and my neighbor died a week or sum ago we really don't know how. We think he died of natural causes. But diabetes does run in my family my dad has it he got his leg cut off. My mom tells me all the time that I have to watch out what I'm doing or I might get it she also tells me to always wear shoes outside and practically everywhere so that's what I always do.

Unknown said...

There has been no major diseases In my family but my dads friend had cancer and passed away from it 2 years ago it was really hard on him and he had s hard time getting over it.but if a family does have to deal with something like that I thing that they should have people around them who care about them to help. The worst disease would probably be cancer they try to cure it. It sometimes works but not always and I think it affects a lot of peoplr

Unknown said...

The only diseases in my family was my dads mom. She had HIV and a tomer in her brain. When she died it was really hard on our family it took a long time for us to get over but sometime u jest have to dill with it. I thank the worst disease would have to be cancer. Cancer is really hard to get ri of but they are trying to find some medicine to cure it.

Zoey Lewis said...

I have had a many family members that suffered from an illness. My aunt suffered from cancer and died 3 years ago. Her dad also suffered from cancer and died about 1and 2 months after her. I don't know the challenges they had but I'm shore that they were very had as for me also. I don't know of anyone with a debilitating illness. I'm actually really compassionate. The worst possible illness I think I could have is cancer because it happened to many people in my family and I don't want it to happen to me also it is hard to cure.