Patients For A Moment, Vol. 1, No. 7

Don’t hate me, but I’ve decided to have a little fun with this edition of Patients For A Moment and pay homage to Michael Jackson. I’ve organized the submitted posts around several popular MJ songs.

Why? Well, aside from the fact that MJ can be considered a musical genius, amidst other questions about his character and past, the most interesting thing to me is whether or not Michael Jackson had lupus. So I’m not making any judgments here for or against MJ as a person, but the idea that he may have had lupus makes a lot of sense and resonates with me, a fellow lupus sufferer.

So all that aside, on with the show…

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“ABC”

“[…] ABC

Easy as...

123 […]”

Since it’s back-to-school time, I figured I would open this edition of PFAM with a back-to-school themed section.

Chronic illness is, above all, a learning curve. There are lessons that undoubtedly come out of, and are learned from, the chronic illness experience. Some of this knowledge is about ourselves, some is about others, and some is a combination of the two.

Jenn from Fibrologie tackles a topic that is important to myself and other students, as she addresses the pro’s and con’s of utilizing the “Disability Office On College Campuses.”

Helen at Pens And Needles takes heed of her own experience with juvenile arthritis and offers “5 Pieces Of Advice For Parents Of Children With JRA.”

Jenni Prokopy at ChronicBabe offers up “30 Things You May Not Know About My Illness: Fibromyalgia,” in honor of National Invisible Chronic Illness Awareness Week (which is September 14 to 20, 2009).

Lauren at Novel Patient explores the positives of Art Therapy, even when she’s not feeling her best.

“Don’t Stop ‘Til You Get Enough”

“[…] Keep On With The Force Don’t Stop

Don’t Stop ‘Til You Get Enough […]”

While illness might stand in the way, these patient bloggers suggest ways of moving beyond.

Barbara Olson at Florence Dot Com laments the time “Before There Were Rapid Response Teams,” when her involvement in her son’s care was not seen as being an asset to his medical team. But she was undeterred, and suggests that others should remain steadfast in their convictions, as well.

Stephanie over at Head Wise discusses the difficulties of admitting weakness and asking for help in the post “The Falling Of Pride.”

Kate Burton from the blog After Cancer, Now What, looks at how insurance companies try to charge patients above and beyond what is their responsibility to pay, in the post “Billing In The Balance.”

“Heal The World”

“[…] Heal The World

Make It A Better Place

For You And For Me

And The Entire Human Race

There Are People Dying

If You Care Enough

For The Living

Make A Better Place

For You And For Me […]”

Simply put, where there are patients, there are also doctors… (and unfortunately, that’s not always a good thing)…

Kairol Rosenthal at Everything Changes asks an important question of patients: Have You Ever Fired A Doctor? She suggests that there are different rules when it comes to making the decision to fire a primary care physician (PCPs) as opposed to a specialist.

In the post, The Right Stuff, Rachel B at Tales Of My Thirties talks about the importance of achieving balance between everyday life and illness.

Lisa over at New Knees For Lisa asks the question, “Who’s Between You And Your Doctor?” in her post about the power of insurance companies and the perils of the medical marketplace.

Lisa, the Queen of Optimism, praises her primary care doctor, while she laments the poor treatment of a specialist, in the post “Exam Report By Patient Q.”

“I’ll Be There”

“You and I must make a pact

We must bring salvation back

Where there is love, I’ll be there

I’ll reach out my hand to you,

I’ll have faith in all you do

Just call my name and I’ll be there

And oh – I’ll be there to comfort you […]”

Several of the posts address the importance of other people in the chronic illness experience.

Laurie Edwards of A Chronic Dose explores the uniqueness of the online chronic illness community, and suggests how much sweeter in-person understanding can be as a result, in the post entitled “Beyond Memes: Public Versus Private.”

Aviva over at Sick Momma writes poignantly about how difficult marriage can be, and what it takes to keep a marriage together despite chronic illness in the post “On Marriage & Chronic Illness.”

Maureen Hayes from Being Chronically Ill Is A Pill reminds us to keep our caregivers in mind and to appreciate all they do, in the post “The Caregiver Role.”

Barbara Kivowitz, In Sickness And In Health, shares one reader’s story of the frustration and pain that can ensue in being a caregiver, in the post “Well Spouse Caregivers: Do You Ever Say, ‘Enough!’.”

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Hope you enjoyed this edition of Patients For A Moment.

And since the show must go on, the next edition will be hosted by Kerri at Six Until Me.