This article is due to be published in Spark (Reading Uni student newspaper) this week. I usually post everything I get published on my Lili Haw blog, but as this one is slightly more personal, have stuck it on this one - my 'testimonial' blog.
Every so often, we experience a life-changing moment. They don't happen too often, but are regular enough to prevent too many long-term plans from forming. Learning how to speak well in any language tends to be one, as do moving away from home for the first time, meeting Mr. (or Mrs.) Right, and finishing your very last exam! We're all familiar with all of these great experiences, and many more. Unfortunately, a few of them are also bittersweet, like discovering you have some incurable ailment that will plague you for a long time to come.
Why should we care about this? These kinds of things don't happen to us - only to our grandparents and senior members of society who have already endured a long and prosperous life. Sadly though, that's not always the case as I discovered recently, following a 'routine' appointment with the doctor. Thankfully, mine is not a fatal illness that will curtail my days, yet is one which, if treated properly with my medication consistently reviewed, will leave me looking and feeling no different from anyone else. Imagine that - anyone among us may have a terminal illness, including your lecturer, classmate, next-door neighbour, study group member or friend. I was amazed to discover that upon telling my news, my best friend announced that she had been suffering from exactly the same illness for the previous few years. That news certainly helped all the little things easier, as a trouble shared feels like a trouble halved.
It’s strange to think that having always refused medicine before on a regular basis and opting for herbal or home-made remedies wherever possible for headaches, stomach-aches and the like, the longevity of my life and ability to carry out physical action is dependent on my taking pills everyday forevermore. So many things will have to change, starting with learning how to swallow tablets for the first time ever. It’s not all doom and gloom though. Being dependent on tablets to survive, I now get all my prescriptions for free. “Oh, I’ve got a spot on my face; can I get anti acne cream on prescription? Drat, a sore throat; how about some cold and flu syrup on prescription?” Oh, the power! It’s also good to know that I finally have a reason for all my minor complaints and that once the tablets are working properly, I’ll finally have a year without frost-bite, a healthy appetite, a desire to drink and have sex – I’ll be a whole new person. I’m still amazed at how many things are dependent on a tiny part of one’s body.
In some ways, possibly for all the obvious reasons, the knowledge that I had an incurable illness came as a shock. In other ways however, it brought a release to the questions and doubts, and a whole new way of viewing life. I don’t know if I’d choose to be in this position, but I’m grateful for the life lessons I’ve learnt along the way. So be at peace when you face an unexpected twist of fate, and savour every life-changing moment you encounter.
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