My brother Gary has Lymphoma and a tumor on his spinal cord.
Back in January he was suddenly unable to walk. He’d had a fall a week or so before (unbeknownst to ME of course) but seemed to be all right. His aids took him to the local ER where they decided to send him along to a sub-acute Nursing Facility.
P/T was tried. No go. The facility was ready just to label him long Term, and be done with it. WE refused to settle for that, and demanded an MRI or CT scan to see what was happening. You don’t go from walking to not walking like the flip of a switch, c’mon!
Well, Gary FREAKS OUT in the MRI tube. Ok. 1st attempt a no-go. So SEDATE him. Nope. They try again, same method. Again no go. I told my mother it was time to get right up in his face and tell him he HAS to do this, like ti or not, and to suck it up and deal. Yeah, no. It’s GARY. No one would EVER tell him that.
The hospital finally smartened up and sedated him. It’s now April. And lo and behold, they discover the tumor on his spine.
I wanted to go BEAT my mother and my sister. They have kept me OUT of the circle of information and participation where Gary is concerned. Ironically, of the three of us, I’M the most qualified to ask pertinent questions of the medical professionals and comprehend what they say. But NO. Mom and Jenn decided I was “too far away” and ignored me.
Well, news flash GROUP. I have POA here, too. And I’m sick and tired of watching you let whatever the current medical group is in control do whatever they want.
They send him to Yale. That eases my mind a bit. Yale is top of the line. They’re the ones who discovered the Lymphoma.
He is currently in the Cancer Center at Yale, getting the best treatment he’s had in years. They’ve started Chemo. We’re hoping for the best. Whether or not that’s what we’ll get is up to the Gods.
I’m broken again. 10 years ago I lost the brother I know. Gone, in the blink of an eye because of something the medical community did to him 7 years before. Now I’m facing it again. I can’t do it. I cry every time I think about it.
I don’t ever let it show.
I’m so tired of being “strong”.
I’m not strong right now. I’m battered and broken and abused. By all the people I love the most, no less.
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