A Shared Article On Transitioning To Life After Cancer
Someone shared this article with me. Although no cancer survivor is identical, the writer discusses a situation that many of us can relate to.
Paul's Heart
Life As A Dad, And A Survivor
Archive for the category “Cancer”
Your Health And Corporate America
I ask for your apologies in advance of reading this post, but right now, I am so pissed off right now! I do not recall having the anger and disgust in me, even as I faced a similar situation myself. But after reading a Facebook post last night, the acid churned in my stomach resulting in a tumultuous and sleepless night.
CORPORATE AMERICA… I HATE YOU AND EVERYTHING YOU STAND FOR!!!!
Okay… so here is what is causing this outburst. If you have followed me on “Paul’s Heart” you know I am 100% in the corner of patients and getting the medical care and support that is needed, NO MATTER WHAT!!! I had been planning on writing a post about just how much corporate America cares, rather, does not care about the health of anyone. So, where as most of my posts, which involve personal emotion, normally sit 24-48 hours just to make sure that I get my point across the responsible way I intend to do so. However, so that you can actually feel my rage right now, this is an unedited, no holds barred post intended to get the attention of anyone in corporate America or our government to give a shit about the mistreatment of patients, especially those facing deadly diseases.
A writer posted on one of the Facebook pages that I follow for Lymphoma, that he was being turned down by his employer, for short term disability coverage. The gentleman has Hodgkin’s Lymphoma, CANCER!!! Now in case the morons that oversee the Human Resources department do not realize it, CANCER is a deadly disease!!! And as a patient deals with cancer, both physically and emotionally, it may leave an employee unable to work. I am not defending someone who simply wants to stay out of work for months for a simple headache, or a sore big toe. This individual has CANCER!!!
Now you may be thinking, “wait a minute, if he has cancer, it is almost a guarantee that he will miss work because of his cancer. That would be common sense.” Except, that is not the case. The individual was turned down for short term disability, to allow him to remain out of work while dealing with his cancer for the following reason… this patient decided that he was going to treat his cancer holistically, instead of by conventional means. And his employer did not approve of this choice. They want him to go through traditional treatments.
Corporate America decided that it did not approve of his decision of his treatment for CANCER, and therefore was going to deny his request for short term disability. ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!?! The employee will still have his cancer, which may or may not respond to his choice of treatment. If it works, he will still experience all the physical and emotional side effects of a patient who undergoes traditional treatments. And if his treatment does not work… well…he will need more than short term considerations.
But just who in the Hell is Corporate America to tell a patient what medical decision needs to be made? It is bad enough that pen-pushers in insurance companies make patients jump through all kinds of hoops when time is most important, ignoring the pleas from doctors to speed up the treatment process to allow the best chance for success.
The decision has been made. Corporate America has stuck a knife through “the heart” of a cancer patient, denying him the opportunity for rest, and recovery that is often needed during this process.
So what will happen? What can be done for this patient? Of course, the majority of responses are all pretty much the same, “get a lawyer and fight”. Which of course is all well and good, if you are a normal and healthy person and have the stamina, and the time to take on such a fight. But cancer patients, as well as others facing serious illnesses do not have this luxury. And Corporate America knows this. So with their heavy hand, you either work, or quit/get fired. But Corporate America did not get where it has by being soft and humane. They are willing to go to court and fight the patient, but their money is hoping that the patient does not. So, even if only one patient out of perhaps five fights this situation, that means four did not, and they would be willing to accept that loss. That is, if this patient chooses to fight.
Corporate America has no right to tell a patient, as a condition of employment what is appropriate as far as treatment!!!
As I mentioned earlier, I have seen this type of behavior before, though through the Worker’s Comp process. I was injured on the job back in 2003, in such a way that could have only happened at work. But because there was lost time from work involved, a supervisor got fancy with a pen to cover their behind, and I was denied. I was adamant that this was not to go against my personal insurance, and got a lawyer to help me prove my case was indeed work related. It took nine months, which I got back all of my pay in full. But it took an independent medical evaluation ordered by my employer, who expected the doctor to side with them, but stated clearly, the injury to my wrist had no chance of ever being done at home. I did not use a jackhammer at home. I did not play hockey recreationally. I did nothing at home that could have created the heavily torqued tear in my wrist. But then again, this was a situation where Corporate America had been willing to roll the dice… deny three for Worker’s Comp, if one appeals and wins, at least they did not concede to the other two who chose not to fight for their right.
CORPORATE AMERICA DOES NOT CARE ABOUT THE HEALTH OF ANYONE!!!!
It is unfortunate that it has to be this way, but I do hope the patient referred to above, does fight for his absence to be covered under short term disability. A Hodgkin’s survivor myself, I recall all too well what fighting the disease took out of me. SHAME ON CORPORATE AMERICA!!!
Pet Zen
So it happened again, my heart fell in love with another dog. I am able to let my common sense rule as I know I am in no position to adopt another fur friend. I live in an apartment which of course does not allow pets. At this point, affording a pet is still an issue while I try to take care of myself. And yes, I do still miss Pollo, so much.
And it is only common sense that has prevented me from adopting another fur friend. Right now, I could really use the healing benefits of a canine companion. For nearly fifteen years, Pollo was a never-ending smile greeting me at the end of every work day, as if I was only gone from his side for just a moment, while in reality, I was away from home anywhere from eight to ten hours a day. He never questioned where I was, why I was late, why I may not have been in the best of moods, or if I was not feeling well, he just knew that we were both happy when we were together. I really still miss that.
So as I go for walks, it is inevitable that I will cross paths with other people walking their pets. Now let me say for the record, I have owned all kinds of animals, and I have always done my best to make sure that they all lived normal life expectancies. In total, 3 dogs, 9 cats, 2 gerbils, 2 guinea pigs, a rabbit, 2 frogs, an assortment of fish, and even a parakeet. Yes, I love animals.
The peace, comforting, and healing effect of animals is becoming so popular now, that it is common place for pets to visit patients in hospitals and oncology offices to help boost the spirits of patients. The pooch pictured above, a “golden doodle, actually visited my late father on his very first day receiving chemotherapy. How times have changed since my days receiving cancer treatments.
But anyway, this post is just about a wish, that some day, I get to share friendship with another canine friend some day. While I like all animals, big and small, I do have a tendency to favor large breed dogs. And because I have small children, actually who are growing quite quickly, behavior of the breed is very important.
Of course, I will still favor the Golden Retriever. I remember playing alpha male with Pollo, and at times we could get carried away, and one of my daughters would try to join in the fun, but Pollo recognized that my daughter was not me, and knew the difference and concentrated his efforts on establishing alpha with me.
And I will state, I love all retriever breeds, though there are some that do not have the demeanor to deal with children as reliably Goldens. But there are other big breeds that I have always thought I would consider when the time comes and I can afford them, spend time with them, and emotionally, is the right time.
But if I had other choices, they would be these three breeds:
The Great Pyrenees
The Newfoundland
And then there is the breed that prompted this post today…
The Burmese Mountain Dog
Yes, I love big dogs. All of these breeds have wonderful dispositions. I know when the time comes, I will most likely go through rescue organizations and not pet stores. And my reason is simple, the majority of puppies and dogs sold in pet stores come from puppy mills. And I know anyone affiliated with a pet store who sells dogs will object and say that it is not true. And those pet stores are relying on semantics. You see, the pet store is most likely buying their dog from a “broker”. But a broker is not a breeder, simply just another step in the puppy mill process because a broker is the one who buys the dogs, most likely from a puppy mill. Don’t believe me? Assuming you have purchased a “pure bred” dog, chances are that the dog’s origin comes from an area overpopulated with puppy mills, like Lancaster County in Pennsylvania.
So yes, when the time comes, rather than contribute to keeping the puppy mills in operation, I will instead do what is of greater need, adoption of a rescue dog instead. But that is when the time is right.
Paul's Heart 