Good Evening. In this blog, as well as the usual discussion
of my health, I will be covering two extra topics: advice on commenting, and
(what I hope) will be an ongoing series of Ten Great British Institutions that are worthy of support as they bring us together and bind us as as society.The NHS possibly being the most important ? and therefore worth preserving .We undermine, neglect &sometimes abuse these 'institutions' to the detriment to our sense of community
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| Still, at least the weather's on our side. |
Symptoms: The
headaches have not been a problem for a few weeks and are readily treated with
prescribed analgesics. The worst of the visual disturbances have significantly
reduced which Anne & I think coincided with the halving of the steroids.
Mood is holding up.
Reduced Eye site, Motivation? I have not felt inclined to
read a book, newspaper, magazine, watch TV, pick up the banjo since the
headaches began. I hope to schedule some of these activities into the daily
routine.
Exhaustion: I find myself on the go for most of the waking
day and go to bed at my normal (when working time). My behavior is a bit
obsessive about detail, wanting to remember stuff, wanting to feel in control
and where things are located- anxiety-apprehension?.
Fear of the future and the enormity of the situation for me
and my family: e.g. Minimum two year forced driving ban; those who know me pre
morbidly will recognize this. I feel sensitive to criticism (fortunately my
three sons carry on doing their thing as normal as possible so I having to
adjust, desensitize)
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| Apparently, if the 90 minute soccer game was reduced by ten minutes, Spurs would be top of the league |
Aims: I would
prefer to get back to work as soon as able, to continue doing what I was doing.
However, the logistics and reality will be very much dependent on the biopsy
results and subsequent treatments.
Coping: Continuing to develop a routine that ensures all the
activities of daily living (Roper N.,
Logan W.W. & Tierney A.J. 1980) are being met in a balanced way and
aiming all the while to be independent of others being influenced by Dorothea
Orem’s Self-Care Theory.
Taking each step at a time. Moment to moment
Drawing on my experience as a Cognitive Behavioral Therapist; Meditation (as previously described and referenced with the usual
caveats, gentle standing yoga. Plenty of support from family, colleagues and friends.
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| 'Aged P' - 'Quality Surveyor , retired' - 'Therapist Guru' - 'Albus Dumbledore' + Usual suspects |
Limiting use
of phone/internet/PC etc. (I had stopped using Twitter as the headaches kicked
in and reduced Facebook time). Establishing normality, coping with rumination
& worrying. Stepped Problem solving.
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| Rory's Normal Stuff |
These models were being advocated during my general nurse
training and practice. They seemed like Common Sense at the time and for me
remain valid. I have been out of general nursing/mental health ward based work
so have little sense of their current use /practice/evidence base. Any comments
from fellow nurses welcome to the blog (see below for guidelines)
I understand that in
order to make a post you have to sign up with the blog.
I am led to believe
this is becoming standard practice so as to introduce a level of moderation to
deal with the nasty (bullies, harasser’s etc elements in our society who have
driven some commentators off line (I would like to read Stan Collymore’s
account of his experience.
I will endeavor to monitor and respond to any comments.
However, with the results due imminently and possible treatments. I may be
incapacitated.
Nevertheless ,the actual blogger/IT person (JH) may be able
to keep an eye on things in addition to his full time job/own life
Now, for the first two of my #Ten Great British Institutions [which unite/bind British society]
1)The NHS& The Charitable Partners (e,g, Macmillan)Who they Work Alongside:
I of course continue to receive quality care and
professionalism as I await my results. These are provisionally planned to
happen this Thursday, and I will use the blog to update the majority. Attached
to the package is access to Nurse Specialists (NHS /Macmillan) who are readily
available for advice. I have only used them once which I found sufficiently
reassuring.
I have also observed a considerable amount of excellent care
and professionalism by the majority of NHS staff afforded to my father-in-law,
who needed admission to the same hospital where my biopsy occurred less than a
week ago. I am extremely grateful to all those involved and am absolutely
certain he is getting first class care and treatment. I wish him a steady
recovery and my love and best wishes to his Anne’s mum and my extended family
at this demanding time.
So many people have been sharing their overwhelmingly
personal positive experiences about the care and treatment received from the
NHS. Some has made some constructive criticism about how things could have been
done different. I would encourage all of you to share these with the providers
in the first instance if not already done so. You are welcome to use the blog
for these comments (though please read my early request about ratios of
positive to negatives as I want this to be a useful, productive discussion).
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| Supportive and pretty relatives |
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| Regaining some of the lost kilos. Fuel Food for my activities. |
#GreatBritishInstuitions;#2:Pubs and Ale (alcohol)
I have been trying to locate a quote about the importance of
the pub to our society/culture. It was made by some observer ‘foreigner’?
Diplomat? And basically goes along the line that the pub is so fundamental that
without it we lose something vital. Anyway, get in touch if you think you can
inform me!
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| Brewed locally, fresh as a daisy. And a good price too! |
Moderate alcohol is permitted in my circumstances. You need
to check with your own doctors whether this is the same for you. I would say I
have been a moderate drinker/pub user since eighteen, with some binge behaviors which I tend to use to wind down at the end of the week. My
preference is for a decent pint of locally brewed ale in a familiar pub. I will
come back and talk about my views on pubs & the unacceptable misuse of Alcohol
which causes so many problems in society for us all. Hopefully, I will be able
to share a story belonging to my friend (PM), who’s father experience of the
pub is heart warning and encapsulates so much about what is so important. If
any one of you liked what people got out of visiting an American version
’Cheers’ you will know what I am talking
about. Sadly our pubs are closing at a staggering rate due to a number of
combining factors .CAMRA are out there doing their bit to halt the decline.
http://www.camra.org.uk/
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| Normal behavior resumes |
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