Ceramic to Clay: The mother of a severely brain-injured son searches for authentic healing

"There is some brain activity," the neurologist stated somberly. A near-drowning upended the life of 12 year old Adam Dzialo. Three weeks on a ventilator, six weeks in a rehab hospital, and then home. The previously healthy, vibrant boy returned to his family, rigid as a board, nonverbal, tube-fed, and severely traumatized. He would scream without sound and cry without tears.

Doctors, nurses, aides, and therapists surrounded Adam, offering surgery, medication, and speech, occupational and physical therapy. Sharon, his mother, wanted the experts to fix her son. This led to nothing but disappointment, fear, and frustration.

Then Sharon met a clairvoyant who kindly informed her that Adam's spirit was not in his body but hovering in a corner in his room. This woman then guided the Dzialo family to open their hearts and minds to a gentler and deeper approach to Adam's recovery.

Sharon Dzialo has worked professionally as a high school teacher and counselor. She is married and the mother of two children. Since the day of her son's accident, Sharon has assumed the roles of a student of trauma and an extreme caregiver. Understanding the nature of healing emerged as her critical life task. It has been a journey fraught with the unimaginable.