Mia’s Masterpiece: Coping Through Long Hospital Stays

Mia has mastered the art of waiting in a hospital – she's spent most of her life practicing it.

She was born with a congenital heart defect and has lived with respiratory challenges, a G-tube, and supplemental oxygen. She spent her first year of life entirely in the hospital and has been back many times since – for procedures, monitoring, and the long stays that come with managing a body that requires constant attention.

Now 15, she’s all too familiar with waiting inside a hospital room. There are days when Mia has to be isolated. She can’t play with communal toys and activities or leave her room.

Still, special comforts bring Mia peace.

Creative Activities to Support Children During Hospital Isolation

Mia received a painting set, a Play-Doh animal set, a sand art kit and games through Starlight’s Toy Delivery Program. These special toys now are all hers, for Mia to use in her room in the hospital.

Mia listened to music as she expressed her creativity with these kits, and for a little while, she had a break from the difficulty of being at the hospital.

She was just a teenager making things — hands in clay, brush on canvas, music on. A smile made its way to her face.

The games Mia received helped care for her entire family. Playing them together with her sisters helped distract all of them from being at the hospital. Starlight not only delivers programs that help hospitalized children, but they also help their siblings too.