Backstretch

BEWARE OF YOURSELF –TAKE CARE IN DISCERNING GOD’S ROLE

BEWARE OF FAMILY AND FRIENDS

You have just become a target for all kinds of well-meaning, smooth talking, unintentionally deceiving and ever tempting “friends. “  They will come out of the woodwork, in the grocery store line, at the gym, across the back fence, and at church. They will be entirely sincere and sincerity sells, but does not guarantee truth.

There has never been a more hopeful time in cancer medicine. We now understand more about how cancer cells behave and how to change their behavior, as well as how to kill them, than we ever have before. Boutique cancer therapy that tailors treatment to each individual, optimizing efficacy and minimizing toxicity was a dream yesterday and today a reality – but it doesn’t exist yet for every cancer and every person. The power of our research tools and the brilliance of today’s investigators is absolutely mind boggling.

AGAIN - BEWARE OF YOUR PHYSICIANS

Welcome to the Backstretch - You have a handle on what treatment is about, have accepted your prognosis as possible and are maybe entering remission - GOOD FOR YOU - now your focus can shift.

The backstretch starts with planting seeds of hope and then cultivating them, then searching for ever better seeds and cultivating them because

“The joy in your heart rests on the peace in your soul, which stands on the strength of your hope.”  *19

 There's nothing wrong with wanting more life, but needing it is something quite different. It is the difference between being a free human being and being an addict. The Wanters saver a slice of life every day without the fear that it will be their last, whereas the Needers are so busy fearing there won’t be enough days to even enjoy what days they still have. Not enough is the welcome sign that invites the Dragon in and gives it the power to consume their thoughts with angst and manipulate their behavior.

"Last night I had a nightmare," a mother of three in tennis shoes and a gym outfit told me. "I don't remember all of it. I just remember that I had fallen over a cliff and in mid fall I had caught hold of a branch. I was hanging on for dear life wrestling in my head with different voices: some saying hang on and others pleading, ‛Just let go’. I woke up still fighting with that question and realized it was all about my cancer. Should I fight or should I give up?"

Thoughts about what you are losing are unavoidable (and normal); denial is no escape. Grief will always have its way with you. It will come out one way or another, often at most inconvenient times. It is a spoiler and unless you deal with it, every day will be in peril, like driving on bald tires — spin out can be around any corner. Get help. What you still have is too valuable to waste. Dredge up every feeling from that dark hole where they hide, bring them into the light, discover them completely, embrace them and deal with them.

“Rational Choice Theory assumes that people make decisions by multiplying the probability of getting what they want by the amount of pleasure (utility) that getting it will bring."*9. This presupposes that one really knows what he/she wants, can tell the doctor and then can reliably extract the probability of getting it from their doctor. If you can’t communicate realistic goals, he has no chance of giving you realistic probabilities. Only you can figure this out and tell him.

Ask Your Doctor About Prognosis Repeatedly

Prognosis tells you what to expect in terms of length of life only as of that moment, but not quality. It will change as time passes and new information comes in, so you must ask repeatedly. Initially it estimates how long you will live if you take no treatment to give you a baseline against which you can consider treatment.