| Author | Marta Bolińska |
|---|---|
| Title | In the face of Down syndrome. Getting to know each other and the world (based on Anna Sobolewska’s „The Cell”) |
| Keywords | down syndrome; child; disability; acceptance; Anna Sobolewska |
| Pages | 37-50 |
| Full text | |
| Volume | 28 |
One of the most common human chromosome aberration is trisomy 21 or Down syndrome (DS). Researchers and therapists notice that when prospect parents find out about disability of their offspring, their previous plans and expectations for the child change pronouncedly.
We recognize several stages of the process and these are so-called transitional periods of: shock, emotional crisis, an apparent adaptation and constructive adaptation to the situation. Anna Sobolewska’s book entitled The Cell. The answer to Down syndrome encourages the reader to revise his or her basic concepts defining life, such as ambition, career, success, happiness and fulfillment. This is a book about fate and how to gradually accept it. The author describes moments of uncertainty and pain, her own and her family. She shares with the readers some spells of joy too. Meanwhile, Sobolewska realizes how the suffering has evolved and transformed into mature perception of the Cell (Cecilia), a person unique, happy and well aware of her otherness.