Perspective

Perspective:

All of the following disease I've been personally touched by: 

Alzheimer's Disease

Epilepsy

Pancreatic Cancer

My Grandmother & Mother both died from Alzheimer's. My son was diagnosed with Epilepsy at age 6 & is at risk of dying from a phenomena known as SUDEP (Sudden Unexplained Death in Epilepsy) and you all know my story with Pancreatic Cancer. All are represented by the symbol of the purple ribbon. 

Today, there are no survivors of Alzheimer’s. If you do not die from it, you die with it. In 2010, 83,494 Americans died of Alzheimer’s disease. Up to 50,000 Americans die each year from seizures and related causes. 36,800 Americans die from pancreatic cancer. ALL of these diseases are personal to me and ALL are deadly. More importantly, to me, ALL are seriously underfunded at the NIH. 

This is what keeps my cancer in perspective: 

I watched the two most important women in my life forget who I was. They forgot their grandchildren, their children and a husband of more than 50 years.  The two women who helped mold me into the woman I grew in to, forgot my name. The Mom I turned out to be was heavily influenced by the example of my most loving and selfless, grandmother, Neenie. I watched her & then my Mom deteriorate over years into a shell of a person and then the "death rattle" began and the Grim Reaper was upon them, stealing the memories and ultimately stealing their breath.

I have watched a 6 year old struggle with the stigma of Epilepsy & deal with the effects of active seizures. It has been the hardest struggle of my life, BY FAR, watching my child go through tests, ER visits and take medication every day to help save his life. I STILL live every day in fear of Epilepsy killing my only child, NOT a cancer trying to kill me. In spite of Epilepsy, my son grew into a confident young man that lives life every day to the fullest. He's loyal & compassionate. He's my hero & a role model for me.

We have talked many times about our deaths. Probably because death has always been in the background of our daily lives. The fear of his potential death & living with the untimely death of my big sister when she was only 5, made it essential to discuss living and the end of life.  Kyle & I came to an agreement many years ago before my cancer: We will celebrate life. We will not embrace death, nor allow the Grim Reaper to dictate our daily lives.

I'm grateful for each day & I'm grateful it isn't my son battling cancer. 

To me, I'll take Pancreatic Cancer EVERY SINGLE DAY as long as my son is doing well. I'll take dying of Pancreatic Cancer over Alzheimer's so I won't forget who my son is years before my death. 

THAT my friends, is MY perspective. All we have is today. 

"Get up, look up & never give up."~Michael Irvin