YOU MAY NEVER HAVE READ NIETZSCHE but you understand what he meant when he said “that which does not kill us makes us stronger.” People with an ostomy can relate. They have suffered pain and the degradation of dehumanizing physical incapacity. They have been poked, prodded, punctured and, finally, cut open. Who knew you could live without a colon, a bowel, an anus? “What if there was one thing that we could do that would end all your pain?” my doctor asked of me one morning. After five months in hospital, I would have confessed to assassinating the head-of-state in order to end the pain. [Sidebar: that’s why torturing prisoners is a waste] So I signed on the line and, soon thereafter, was whisked on a gurney down the hall toward surgery and an unrevealed future I neither anticipated not understood. SPOILER ALERT: that was 1964, and I’m still waking up every morning. I may not always have a smile on my face, but I have a song in my heart. WHAT DOES NOT KILL US MAKES US STRONGER.
Hi Henry, I think a lot of us on here can relate to your post, and it almost gives me PTSD thinking about what I've been through with the picks and pokes, the trainee nurses trying to put in an IV with the needle vertical to the arm or wiggling it around trying to catch the vein. I shudder now to think of it, or the last time I was in for resection surgery and being woken up by someone screaming and crying, "They're killing me!" and crashing sounds. But all in all, I feel more appreciative of people and things around me.
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Hi Hatlady and all,
I've had my ostomy for over 50 years, since I was a kid, and didn't think I really needed to be part of the ostomy site. But once active, I came to realize, that although I may not need help at the time, I was able to reach out and help others in need. Back in the day, before stoma therapists, I use to visit new patients in the hospital or homes ... While professionals are great, it is also good to be able to speak with people with personal experience. I was a free member for awhile, but after writing often, I was given free months. I then started paying, and decided to just take lifetime membership. After all, I was going to have my ostomy for the rest of my life. I'm one of those people who can disappear for a few months at a time, but I'm always glad that the site is here, I can return and reconnect with old friends, and make new ones. This is an excellent site ... Best regards to all ... and Best wishes for a Healthy and Happy New Year.
Henry ... No matter how much suffering I've been through for more than half my life, you're so correct.
Tattered and torn I must be... but will always remain... the same old me.
Experiences of living have made me the strongest woman I can be, and I am so thankful and grateful to be alive, living my life, and hopefully enriching others. I have found that a good deed each day keeps my doctors away.
Ritz
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