That is a quote from Michael J. Fox on the Larry King show, in response to a question about how it was to act now with Parkinson's disease. That statement, and another he made: "The only thing I don't have a choice about is having Parkinson's - everything else I have a choice", fit my thinking of this life after a cancer diagnosis. I don't have the same toolkit of energy to do the level of outreach I used to do before 2006, for example, but I do have new tools: inner strength that has been proven; empathy; and first-hand knowledge of how becoming an informed patient can improve treatment outcomes. I don't have a choice about having adenoid cystic carcinoma - but I do have a choice about everything else.
An update - I had my annual CT scan (not sure if I ever get another MRI, they figure the CT will be better since I have the titanium screen door on my skull), and no aliens were spotted. I have been having increased headaches, but hey, the docs have done their best to GIVE them to me, so the least I can do is enjoy the things. No pain meds were offered, other than alternating tylenol and ibuprofen. Looking forward to spring someday - and still going without the head covering this year in the sun. I am not out to get the tan of my life (figure that would look weird anyway), but it is so nice to be able to not wear the shade right now.
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3 comments:
Terry, so sorry to hear you have the headaches. Maybe it's spring pollen? Hope so. Take care and thanks for the update.
Your Atlanta Buddy.
Hi Teri,
Yippee! No aliens! I'm waiting to hear about my own CT scan results, but my tumor markers are still in the normal range, so I'm not expecting any either.
Too bad about the headaches . . . they have no idea about what's causing them? That titanium screen perhaps?
Congrats, Teri! I know how comforting it is to get a "no aliens" report!
Hi Teri--no new posts in awhile.
Are you busy, or just nothing much to write about?
Jeanne
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