Abraham Lincoln was quite right when he offered that advice. And it has not been as easy as one would think!
As January came to a close, the little twinges of neuropathy that had lain dormant since October began to show themselves. Rich’s balance was starting to once more resemble the sailboats we watched on the lake last summer… there was a slight list and occasional stumble. We met with our ketamine team and they advised another five-week session. And asked if we could wait until April so that we had a six-month span between treatments. Not a problem.
There is a certain frustration that most patients have with their health care and that is either waiting in offices forever or waiting for an appointment itself. When you aren’t feeling well, in whatever shape that discomfort takes, that frustration is magnified. We’ve found medical offices each work differently and sometimes the doctors themselves are not aware of how theirs truly work. We were told the insurance approval and appointment scheduling was under way when we saw the K doctor in February. We would start at the beginning of April.
Long story short, when we called in mid-March to find out about our appointment we were told it would be mid-May… they were booked til then and they had just gotten Rich’s file. We asked to speak to the doctor himself. Now, Dr Ketamine is a very nice man. He treats his patients with respect and care. His manner suits our ways. He’s direct. And he took our concerns to heart and is very much a partner in our journey. Rich was immediately scheduled for a one-time four-hour infusion, a booster, right away. There were no other appointments to complete the once-a-week-for-five-weeks infusions but this small gap existed for us to slip into to hold Rich over until May.
As we thanked him for this, we also admonished him, he needs to change his dialogue with his patients… his office does not run the way he thinks it does and to present that expectation is to set patients up for disappointment. He agreed. We learned a valuable lesson. We had gotten complacent with our stem cell team who took control of our appointments once we were in their hands. That time is now past. Another milestone slaps us in the face and tells us to wake up!
As I have often said of Rich, I am in awe. The pain he dealt with before these ketamine treatments or every day when the ketamine wore off is astounding. And he always handles it with humor and stoic resolve. But in March just before the infusion booster, as he pulled off his socks at night, the internal screaming was beyond containment. That moment when he would sit and lift his foot to prep for bed was put off until there was no recourse but to get on with it. And hope the meds he just took will kick in soon. His shoulders would shake in an effort to control the sobs. It was impossible for us to wait two months. As Rich said today in wonderment “I didn’t know it could be so painful under your toenails!”
That booster in March eased the pain slightly but was indeed just a stopgap. It was not long before the nighttime rituals were dreaded once more and the cane was again needed to keep him upright. We are determined to maintain a strict six-month rotation on the schedule to avoid this gap going forward.
Abe is also quoted as saying “Most folks are about as happy as they make up their minds to be.” Indeed. Throughout our journey Rich has had such humor about each situation we have found ourselves in. He has made up his mind, as that man whose likeness is now carved on Mount Rushmore has said, to be as happy as possible. And it manifests itself in so many positive ways, despite his ongoing neuropathy.
Two days ago, my brave and strong-willed husband began the road, once again, to relieve this pain that plagues him. We’ve started, as we did seven months ago, the four-hour infusions once a week for five weeks that will ultimately have him without pain on his radar. As we left the facility, we couldn’t help but laugh at how this building has no hand rails on the steps leading to the sidewalk. They house this ketamine group as well as a spine institute… wheelchairs to assist in the lobby for patient use. And yet… no handrails? Feet and brain were temporarily disconnected as we attempted those rail-less stairs. We roared in amusement looking as if we just left a late night of imbibing at the bar; holding each other up. The cab driver looked at us warily, hoping, I’m sure, that we were not his fare! For a couple of days, Rich will have this loopiness but we hope once more that instead of those blade-like stabbing spikes and internal screams, he will soon glory in the feel of texture on his feet… warm sand, fresh-mown lawn, cool stone. Or as he did in January, the feel of his grandsons vying for his attention as they clamber to his lap, his feet their boost up.
Mr Lincoln was also known to say, “We can complain because rose bushes have thorns, or rejoice because thorn bushes have roses.” I do know for certain Rich will meet the future as he has done so far, finding the roses and not the thorns despite their efforts to prick.
Use What Exists 