I don’t like talking about health issues. There is nothing so boring. I remember sitting in a hospital waiting room, one of only two people under the age of 50 about 15y ago.
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It was a friendly place & there was a massive sense of solidarity. Most were really unwell & some had to be helped by others to their seats. Doctors, nurses & staff were amazing. We were all public patients given the gravity of our illnesses.
As part of the effort to arrest my blindness I had to have special dyes dropped in my eyes which would render me completely blind as I sat there. Occasionally my female opposite number would sit beside me & the two of us would listen to this Parliament of the ill.
Everyone would say hello to the people they sat beside & conversations would spring up all around us, as I or my comrade-in-arms would listen to our seniors. These conversations were all about what the individuals were suffering from, which consultant they were ‘under’ or medication they were on.
I loved that we were all one amorphous mass of understanding but decided at that point, in one of the endless successions of tests, results & complications that I would not define who I am by limitations. I understand/understood why others would & the camaraderie.
But it’s not for me. In fact my very understanding sisters & brothers meet my medical teams & discuss my treatments & prognosis instead of me. My creaking old cadaver is a limitation that I don’t want to consider. My job is thanking the staff, staying positive & being very thankful that…
…I live in a time where Big Pharma can keep me alive, that the State pays for me to get the best brains working on me & that if I want, I too can join the parliament in that waiting room!
Have been a caregiver for loved ones (including my little son) with serious health issues for more than 15 years. It can be hard to share our lives with those outside of the world of serious illness. I recognize the solidarity you describe. Sending you lots of good wishes 🕯️
Thanks! You also learn lots of information in how to approach things. I can walk into any ward & recognise the most competent nurse & find out what I need to know instantly. It’s helped when dealing with other’s illnesses. Solidarity 😉
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