Mary Jo Bellner Swartzberg
“How do you feel?” I asked my husband as the nurse helped him into the passenger side of my car. “Better than I did prior to the test,” he said. I could see that he was still groggy and shaky, the after effects of the twilight medicine that was given to him prior to the procedure. His previous 48 hours consisted first of a soft diet, then liquid diet, followed by the torturous process of taking several pills and drinking, hour-on-the-hour, a terrible tasting lemon-lime concoction. Both the pills and the concoction would empty the colon completely in preparation for my husband’s routine colonoscopy.
“Well, it’s over now,” I said cheerfully. As I backed up my car I asked, “Where do you want to go for breakfast?” We stopped for a wonderful breakfast and leisurely talked about the proceedings of the rest of the week.
Earlier, the gastroenterologist had met with me after my husband’s procedure. I was relieved to hear the words everything looked good. My stiff shoulders were now able to relax. I would sit in the waiting room until a nurse would let me know that I could drive to the back of the building for my husband’s discharge.
While I was in the waiting room I looked at the others who were sitting there. I wondered how many would be receiving the good news just given to me.
Prepping for a colonoscopy is darn (there is a stronger word I could use here!) difficult. Most people over the age of 60 probably have had their routine colonoscopies – or, perhaps not.
I am reminded of friends of ours in Ohio – Robert and Cindy. Robert retired at the early age of 62 from a Fortune 500 Company. After retirement Robert decided that he and Cindy did not need health insurance. They figured that they would have enough money to take care of any health care issues that would come along. In addition, after retirement, Robert decided that neither of them needed to go to the doctor for check-ups.
One day as my husband was walking through the lobby of the hospital where he worked he saw Cindy. My husband asked, “Is everything all right?” She replied, “No.”
Robert had been experiencing some abdominal issues, so he saw a doctor who ordered a colonoscopy. The news was not good; Robert had Stage IV colon cancer. After a few months Robert passed away at the age of 69.
Routine check-ups should be a part of our lives, but so often we make excuses not to proceed with them. Whether or not we are afraid that something will be found or we feel that we are just too busy to bother, often times we roll the dice regarding our health.
Having a colonoscopy could be perceived as an interruption of our routine but, on the other hand, it is a minor inconvenience for one’s peace of mind, in addition to not having “if only” thoughts later on.
This I have learned.