To all the Newbies and all the members who have been here for years,
This will be my first Christmas that I will be among you as a member and I wish you well on all of your individual journeys! Sometimes it is better not to feel weird or ostrasized for having this most peculiar balance problem. You, all in your own way, have been supportive of me by making me feel like a part of a larger community, and I wanted to take a moment to express my thanks.
By commenting or not, you have given me the courage I needed this time during my period of not knowing what to do with my radiation this June. The initial panic I felt in 2004, when I initially made the warped decision to avoid surgery by going with the opinions of 14 doctors....I literally felt like chicken little! The sky was falling! How could this be happening to me again! As you know, I didn't want to redo a massive search like that again, so I limited my search to 3 of my top picks. As it turned out, for me, I chose my initial doctor because he was the one I felt most comfortable with, when I made the initial decision to have the AN surgically debulked. Any procedure, involves research so I appreciate your patience with me as I came to my decision (to have radiation).
In February, as you know, I came to this forum here I found that feeling of measured concern where I really calmed down, stepped back a bit and weighed my options. You have been so comforting , I am glad I made my decision based on your recommendations. I am so thankful to have met all of you and look forward to helping you and being of what assistance I can either through online advice or meeting you personally through the local NYC chapter meetings.
I am so fortunate to have met you and am thrilled to be able to contribute by simply sharing my experiences! Being a member of a larger group is certainly superior to being out there alone (as I was in 2004) I very nearly lost it! I would encourage new users "newbies" to not give up just because you have an initial diagnosis of an AN, but to do the initial work of doing the research, following up with the opinions of at least 3 top doctors and then making the tough choice on which of the options you want to go with. We here on the ANA forum will help if you ask.
Certainly, recent events Hurricane Sandy and the School Shooting have brought into sharp contrast our collective plight and made it seem a bit trifling and over dramatic.... But we all shouldn't let that discourage us from our treatment plans!
Push forward! Plan ahead! Allow yourself time to grieve, but then proceed with your plans!
I realize that you all may or may not be religious as I am so in closing let me wish you a Happy Holiday with your respective families.
I look forward to a better year ahead(2013) for all of us! Health be with you!
Your friend,
Mike
