A few months after his death I moved from Guatemala to the United States. Dealing with my mother's sudden death (stroke) and adjusting to a new life away from my family has been very difficult for me. My mother's sudden death changed my life. After trying so hard to overcome the sadness of not having my mother with me, I had to distort reality. I changed the images of his limp body lying in the hospital (he was brain dead) with one of his beautiful photos of himself smiling. Every time I think of her I see her happy and smiling. I still distort reality because, in my heart, I think that my mother is with me and always watches over me. Sometimes, I talk to her (in my mind) whenever I feel sad. I unconsciously distort reality because by doing so I feel better in the face of adverse circumstances (I delude myself), and this distortion mechanism really helps me to cope