A Guest Post…

A friend of mine wrote this post and he wanted me to share it with the world. Being a med student I understand the importance of the message he is trying to convey. Please do share it with the ones you love…..

“This is a Chemo-port.  In my religion, the son carries out the last rites of the departed through cremation, and on cooling down of the pyre, salvages the bones. My toes could still feel the hot sand when I collected what remained of my mother and among all that, was this.

This page isn’t going to be about cancer, yet I’ll brief you through. It started fibroids, then non-malignant tumor in breast in 2006, operated; discovered as malignant less a year ago – 4th stage, mets in bones, had eaten the lower vertebrae. After various illnesses, septicemia and brain mets lead to a sub-Dural hematoma – fifteen days coma – she came out of it; paralyzed in the left. Another fifteen days of brain radiation as she recovered her speech and slight movement. While I stood by her shoulder night and day, meningitis went past me. She died in the ICU, in front of my eyes, cardiac arrest, because the doctors couldn’t catch the meningitis till it made the final hits.

A friend’s mother shared no less painful a fate, breast cancer, discovered at mets in kidney, liver, bones and lungs, died the week following the diagnosis.

The point, Don’t avoid the doctor. Please.

Do not ignore the smallest of health issues, minor pains untreated lead to unfortunate situations; breast cancer being one. And while the world suffers, paranoia is a safer bet. Get your mother checked; at best it’s a price paid to hear the good news. No one should suffer, no mother should die, yet catch it before it spreads – Praemonitus praemunitus – because by the time we know, they would already be leaving.

I am writing this, in hope, that no one reading this will ever suffer the same fate as I did. Either the good news or an earlier detection, always consult your doctor. Mothers tend to avoid the doctor in fear, or for whichever reasons, push her. We were scared too, we were too late, you don’t want to be us. Everyone gets scared, courage doesn’t mean you are scared, it means you more ahead despite the fear.

Do not ignore your family’s health. Nature is strange and we are fragile. Take heed, get regular check-ups.

They tried eight times to revive her, yet she left. I saw my mother’s heart-rate drop, and then suddenly from a forty-four to a dead zero, you don’t want to be me.

If you are a mother, do your checkups for your family’s sake. If you are a father, let your children bear your burden too, never hide, nobody gets to say goodbye. Do not carry the world on your shoulders alone. If you are a son, come home on time, you’ll regret it regardless of anything. Nobody can ever be worth the time, your life needs others, but your mother will be irreplaceable, try and balance. And all of you, create memories, they’ll end up being too less. Eat healthy and see your doctors.

When you are picking up what’s left of the pelvic girdle which brought you into this world, there isn’t any theology left. Take care of your loved ones, don’t be running off to idols while your loved ones suffer any pain, get them the scientific medical help they need, on time. Time – death – is always a step ahead, where are you. Hopefully not holding the chemo-port you salvaged from your mother’s ashes. Be well.”

Dream Man

Still waiting here

Still alone

Looking for someone

I know from a distant memory

Can you help me find him

I think I remember

Just how he looks

Though I’m not sure

Maybe if I saw him

Or heard his voice

I’ll recognize him

From my dreams

He’s my stranger

My desire

That comes to me in my sleep

Maybe just my imagination

But is more than reality..

P.s. I’m really sorry for my long absence but I was caught up with my exams and all and you know how these things tend to suck the life out of you 😦 So I guess I can safely say that I’m back now and hoping to post more often 🙂