Am I Normal or Am I Different?
For the teens in this study, fitting in and not sticking out contributed to their quality of life. The ability to accept themselves for whom they were revealed a satisfied sense of self. Their scars served to remind them that they were different from their peers, but maintaining a sense of normalcy throughout their daily lives was a priority for them. found that this process of normalization was dynamic and varied throughout the lives of adults with congenital heart disease. Congenital heart disease was not a problem for those who had learned to live with the restrictions, but there were others who were unsuccessful at adapting to the limitations of their disease. The teens in this study saw themselves as normal and thus were adapting. These teens, like their peers, were working at coming to an understanding of their role both within their family and within the greater society. In other words, they were developing a sense of themselves as individuals, different and apart from their family, their peers, and society as a whole. This dialectical process is one that takes place over several years and involves a gradual progression toward independence, and there was evidence of this process in the data. This increase in independence was more related to maturity and developmental level than age.