Good Sunday afternoon to all of my friends and acquaintances on SDN.
I have been debating on whether or not to post this information but in light of several posts I have recently seen on the site, I feel that I can contribute to the ideas and thoughts of those of you in training and those of you still young to the private and academic practice worlds.
This past Wednesday at the ripe old age of 40, I was diagnosed with stage IV invasive adenocarcinoma of the lung. Don't smoke, don't drink except socially, never did drugs. Wouldn't have found it had I not gotten pneumonia from my brother. A big curveball on the road of life thrown at me at just the wrong time. Some tears and some down feelings, before my wife and my friends and family threw their support behind me and I kicked myself in the tail to remind myself I'm not dead yet. Close, but not yet.
No overt signs or symptoms over the past 2-3 years (which is the estimate of how long I have had this). Over the last year, some fatigue, but as busy as I am, not something out of the ordinary, and considering I worked out 7 days a week including an hour of cardio every day, well within acceptable tolerances. No weight loss and in fact have gained 10 pounds.
In writing this post, I want to first of all tell everyone, ENJOY LIFE!!! No one goes to their grave wishing they had worked a few more days. I can tell you that having taken this past week off, even something as simple as walking with my wife to a coffee shop (my first caffeine in almost 16 months) during the morning hours with the wind rustling the leaves of the red oaks of our neighborhood, I felt like I had missed out on so much, if even something as mundane as this moved me so much. That doesn't even begin to touch on the times and events I missed with my kids as I drove myself to exhaustion on a day to day basis with work, side businesses, politics, administration, etc.
I am not saying drop everything you are doing and never come back but take time off consistently to enjoy the day to day activities that we as type A professionals tend to forsake for our careers. You will feel better for doing it and you will have more energy to tackle those seemingly insurmountable tasks you have piled up for your work days.
Secondly, don't ignore symptoms. Don't treat yourself without finding out for sure what you are currently experiencing. While I had no symptoms, I did get checked out regularly with my internist, have already had an EGD, colonoscopy, CT scan, X-rays, and lab work done and this still managed to sneak in. That being said, it is still better to be consistent and thorough to pick up more obvious ailments.
Make sure you have good life and disability insurance. That was a topic recently brought up and as a just turned 40 year old now with a much shorter than expected shelf life, I can tell you that the anxiety of wondering what will happen to my family far outweighs any anxiety I have about my condition. I do not fear death. Never have. I fear uncertainty for my family more than anything else. Of course, I just recently terminated a life insurance policy in preparation for changing to another. Now out of both.
Save, SAVE, S A V E! Investments, gambling, stocks, fast cars, big houses, etc. all are fast ways to keeping you poor in the short term and likely unprepared for just such an event. I was balanced but if I had to do it over again, I would have put just a bit more into savings than into risky situations and cars. Of course, that was when I was younger and invincible. Having a war chest of funds safely tucked away in whatever non-depreciating savings form you desire will give you the peace of mind to live comfortably and to be prepared for life's unexpected lightning bolts.
I will certainly miss the wonderful discussions we have seen over the past 8 years and I regret that I have met so few of you face to face to put a proper name and image to the screen name. Maintain the integrity of this board and help each other as we have all seen many people do over the past 8 years that I have been privileged to be a part of.
May all of your lives be filled with happiness and joy and may we all one day see an end to the strife, conflicts, and wars we so readily relegate ourselves to, on Earth or in Heaven.
