This weekend my medical school class from UVa lost our first classmate. Sarah was her name and she faced the battle of breast cancer in private. The email out to our class with the news weighed hard on my heart to share my challenges with my classmates. I am a very private and self-driven independent person, as most people in my med school class, the changes that have come with life these past few years have been staggering to say the least. The month before I left South Carolina to come back to Norton,VA I rode 150 miles on my bicycle in a single day. It was after a night of call I will never forget. I had no sleep and still managed to ride longer than I ever had in my life. I can say the struggles I conquered through choice has helped me to conquer the struggles I have faced as a patient. I am a little stronger this week, but if you spent all day with me you could not see it. I have a little more energy but if you stayed at my house you would say I sleep too much. I am closer to walking but again, I cant walk unless I have parallel bars to support my effort. My walking is really limited by two things. Mainly its my trunk. There is a group of muscles that just are not back yet.... I believe they work but they are not strong at all. I need more strength in them so I can have more control. My left leg is almost as strong as my right but I have a hamstring cotracture that keeps me from getting my prosthetic updated. That should be treated this week with Botox and hopefully will go away when I can put more effort into using my legs and not sitting in a chair all day. My cancer is gone. I will go this week to have a PET/CT ordered to make sure my cancer is still gone but it is. I have fought it enough. I would write that I wish there were more to report but I am glad there is not. I could be reporting that my cancer is back or that some other tragedy has happened. I have thought a lot this weekend about Sarah and the friends and family I have lost in the past few years. Its devastating. I counted up last week and I believe I had about 40,000mi on a road bike with Bill Collie, about half of my total miles. He has gone on before me. In looking at these things what should we learn? I dont know honestly. I have been waiting today to write so that maybe it would come to me. Right now, to me, its that you and I not waste today. Spend your time doing things that you want to do. We all have to live with any consequences, so be reasonable, but we should be happy while we are here. This is a short ride. Share this life , and its struggles, with someone and dont waste your days - only God knows when will be our last. cs
Posted on: Mon, 28 Jul 2014 00:29:51 +0000