Funny and interesting to me. I have CAD and APC, then yesterday, I received the results of a DEXA bone scan, and now I can add extreme osteoporosis to this increasing list of ailments. I’ve gone into “battle” with the CAD and used a CABG5 to extend things awhile which followed a RARP to pull out a chunk of cancer cells all at MGB. I got great care from skilled docs, so I’ve decided not to succumb to the war analogy, but instead compare myself to an old car on the New England back roads trying to keep going as the under carriage rusts out from salt on the roads, and the mechanical systems clog up and break apart. The car’s parts held up for a long time as I beat the shit out of it on those New England roads, and instead of bitching at it when it stalls and is slow to start, I am going to nurse it along, pamper it and urge it to keep going. Ernie, my local,garage closed so I can no longer go to him and ask him how to fix this or that without now driving east to MGB and plugging myself into a computer that will spit out a report about which part of my insides is going to fail next. This is not a battle with an increasing number of diseases. It’s just the old body wearing out faster than I’d prefer it would. I’ve had a good run for seventy-six years, and now I just hope when everything stops running completely, it’s quick and not too painful.
When I was diagnosed with breast cancer, I didn't realize the October phenomena led by Komen et al, of "cancer is a gift", "positivity will beat cancer", "cancer warriors"--I really appreciated a post on breastcancer.org that discussed the tyranny of positive thinking--and that it's often imposed on cancer patients to relieve others of their uncomfortable feelings. A negative attitude is just a bad day, not an implication about your prognosis. I strongly recommend "Bright-Sided".
Another one that gets me is, “you’ve come so far!” Maybe I have, but, I owe a great deal of that to modern medicine and not letting Spina Bifida (L4-L5) take over my life.
Funny and interesting to me. I have CAD and APC, then yesterday, I received the results of a DEXA bone scan, and now I can add extreme osteoporosis to this increasing list of ailments. I’ve gone into “battle” with the CAD and used a CABG5 to extend things awhile which followed a RARP to pull out a chunk of cancer cells all at MGB. I got great care from skilled docs, so I’ve decided not to succumb to the war analogy, but instead compare myself to an old car on the New England back roads trying to keep going as the under carriage rusts out from salt on the roads, and the mechanical systems clog up and break apart. The car’s parts held up for a long time as I beat the shit out of it on those New England roads, and instead of bitching at it when it stalls and is slow to start, I am going to nurse it along, pamper it and urge it to keep going. Ernie, my local,garage closed so I can no longer go to him and ask him how to fix this or that without now driving east to MGB and plugging myself into a computer that will spit out a report about which part of my insides is going to fail next. This is not a battle with an increasing number of diseases. It’s just the old body wearing out faster than I’d prefer it would. I’ve had a good run for seventy-six years, and now I just hope when everything stops running completely, it’s quick and not too painful.
When I was diagnosed with breast cancer, I didn't realize the October phenomena led by Komen et al, of "cancer is a gift", "positivity will beat cancer", "cancer warriors"--I really appreciated a post on breastcancer.org that discussed the tyranny of positive thinking--and that it's often imposed on cancer patients to relieve others of their uncomfortable feelings. A negative attitude is just a bad day, not an implication about your prognosis. I strongly recommend "Bright-Sided".
Funny and important. Language matters. I also recommend Dr. Atul Gawande’s book Being Mortal.
Another one that gets me is, “you’ve come so far!” Maybe I have, but, I owe a great deal of that to modern medicine and not letting Spina Bifida (L4-L5) take over my life.