The Power of NO!

  It is definitely true that knowledge is power and in the case of a potentially terminal disease it is immensely important for you as a patient to gain as much knowledge as you can about your condition so that you can be proactive in your treatment. Another tip I want to share is something that I learned far too late in the game:     -  You have the power to make decisions about your treatment and care. I want you to know early on that you too have the power of "No."
 Did you know that your doctor or caregiver works for you and not the other way around? It is your precious, blood sweat and tear bought and dearly payed for insurance that pays the bill for his precious business-grey Mercedes coupe parked out in that special doctor's parking space in the hospital parking lot. Did you know that you do not have to play the good and compliant patient and go along with every lame or flaky diagnosis, every quack cure, or sit calmly on the exam table in tears while he talks on the cell phone about his Greek vacation? (this actually happened to me).
  The power of "no" came to me in the hospital like a lightning bright LED bulb. I had had just about enough. My body looked like a pin cushion from being stuck so many times. I finally had to have a port put in my chest so they could access my veins that they had completely collapsed and looked like the Santa Monica Mountains. The nurse comes in with a bag of something else to feed into my tubes (I already had three going) and tells me, "Your going to hate me but I have to start an IV for this." I calmly looked at him and said, "No your not, I have a port for that." He did not agree in so many words. I said, "See that sugar fluid bag? Unplug it, I don't need it, then plug yours in." What happened next was ground-breaking! He smiled at me and shook his head and did EXACTLY what I told him to do.
  And that my friend, is the power of "no" in action. You have the power to make choices. You know your body best. It took me two months and at least four doctors and countless "procedures" to find out I did actually have something wrong with me like I THOUGHT! And the fight continues. I was sent by my oncologist to a specialist she picked for a second opinion to see if I indeed needed to receive 8 chemo treatments instead of the usual 6 with a possible hospital stay of two weeks. Now this is no ordinary specialist. She is THE premiere lymphoma UCLA specialist of specialists. She told me I was in remission and was probably cancer free from treatment 4. My oncologist called me right before Christmas to give me the news and quipped, "Well, we will give you the benefit of the the doubt."  Uh, Thank you?
  In conclusion I would like to strongly encourage you to ask questions, research, make proactive educated choices and decisions. It can be intimidating in that cold doctors office nodding your head with a blank "What the heck" expression. Believe me, I know, but I have faith in you. Trust me, they don't always give you the vital info you need. Just remember, you have the power!

Stay tuned as next time we tackle Chemo!