Chatting on the phone, good naturedly ribbing a friend about dodging something planned for the immediate future I inadvertently boxed him into sharing a diagnosis of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS).
I hung on the other end of the phone in the loudest silence I have ever heard.
What insightful, thoughtful remark could I offer to break the silence? … “Can you still drive?”
Geesh! Where in left field did that question come from?
No wonder people facing a life altering diagnosis may choose to keep it to themselves for as long as they can. How many times a day can you play 20 questions?
One of the most frequent emails I get is from friends and families trying to ‘share’ the time following diagnosis of Multiple Sclerosis. Our story of Patti’s diagnosis of probable MS was explored in an earlier entry, “the call”. My father concealed his diagnosis of pancreatic cancer for the better part of a year.
Diagnosis is so much more than a word.
Caregivingly Yours, Patrick Leer
web site: http://caregivinglyyours.com/
videos: http://www.youtube.com/daddyleer
One of the hard parts about getting a bad diagnoses is telling the ones you love because you know it cause them so much pain. Great entry.
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