That is Artemis…she was Apollo’s sister. Being “gay” is “in” and I have a love affair going with her. I am talking about the hospital “Artemis” in Gurgaon.
When I was first referred to Dr Siddharth Sahni, an onco-surgeon, I walked into the Artemis Hospital because I had no choice. I was in pursuit of Dr Sahni. That was the beginning of my affair with Artemis.
I was there everyday and every where. I romanced with her in the OPD rooms, Phlebotomy, Ultra Sound, Mammography rooms. I was in her basement, in the PET scan chamber, in the IPD rooms. The OTs, the Chemo Therapy Centre, The Radiation Therapy chambers, the ICU floors, the various desks, and the toilets at every corner….I know them all, have seen them all in their best and their unkempt states. I bared my body to her and she hid nothing from me!
Our familiarity and love blossomed. I know most of the members of her family …the terrific doctors, the wonderful male and female nurses, the young technicians in every room and the various other staff members. Artemis, too, greets Pradipta as a dear family member.
Every day that I trudge or glide into Artemis, I receive a big welcome smile from everyone that I encounter. The gateman sings “Good Morning Madam” with such exuberance that I feel that, that is the one magical morning that I have been waiting for all my life! The young boys and girls at the desks wear big smiles and never fail to enquire how one is feeling. The nurses wave and smile with twinkling eyes as if to say, “Yippee, let’s have fun!!” And finally when I meet the doctor, he/she has a huge grin to say, “Hey, what is your worry? I am here!!” Try as he might, to be grouchy and sad and morbid, even the skeleton with the cross bow at his mouth would be unable to resist a smile!!!
I was instilled with a phobia that big hospitals fleece you mercilessly till you drop down penniless. I haven’t felt that way at Artemis so far…but after all, we have been lovers for only the last nine months. Do you remember my precious Herceptin that I need to take once every three weeks? Well it comes in 400 mgs packs and I need only 350mgs of it. The chemo therapy centre stashes away the remaining bit of the drug with my name on it so that I can use it during my following chemo session. Pradipta and I danced a jig when we paid zilch during my last session. The left-over drug had accumulated to meet my required dosage!! You do understand why I wanted to give a long passionate kiss to sweet Artemis?
Her culinary skills are pretty pathetic, but other than that my Artemis is young, beautiful, efficient, loving and always holds my hand as is her motto. Commitment is boring and passé. Hence I am convinced that we should not be together for too long. Yet, considering the circumstances, I am glad to have met her, to be with her. God bless dear Artemis!!
Friday, October 22, 2010
Thursday, October 21, 2010
FLOATING ON CLOUDS FOUR!!
I don’t have nine clouds to float on. I only have four brilliant ones to lean upon and float over emotional hills and dales, over chasms and meadows. My four brilliant doctors have been helping me float.
When I first encountered each of my doctors, I was terrified. Dr. Siddharth Sahni, the young onco-surgeon had had the unenviable task of telling me that I had cancer. I could have killed him then….I wanted to tell him that he was insane. Pradipta and I felt that we were getting buried alive in a tunnel. Dr. Sahni talked to us, guided me through the various tests, revealed the exciting contents of the Pandora’s Box and helped me to accept the dreaded “C” disease. He operated on me, was with Pradipta every time that he could get out of the OT and was like a dear family member who stood by us all the way.
Six weeks after the surgery, I graduated (not floated) to the second level of treatment. Dr. R. Ranga Rao is the onco-medicine genius. After having been pampered by Dr. Sahni, I dreaded meeting any other doctor. But soon after the first meeting, Dr. Rao erased away my fear. He is such a thorough professional, yet so gentle! His positivity is infectious and it makes me believe that things just cannot go wrong! I have shared my stupidest worries with him and have only received serious, genuine answers to them. He gives the most brilliant medicines to sort the various problems which crop up along the tortuous path of chemo therapy. I told him so one day. He smiled awkwardly and simply said, “Thank You.”
I survived (not floated) through 4 months of aggressive chemo therapy. I began on radio therapy treatment under Dr. Subodh Pandey. I was petrified when I first saw the gigantic machine. But Dr. Pandey and his terrific team helped me through. I was on the dreaded machine for 31 days. Dr. Pandey gently fore warned me of difficulties and advised me on how to tackle them. I trudged (not floated) through the treatment.
Dr. Ruchika Khetarpal is my beautiful cloud. She takes care of the chemo therapy centre. It amazes me how she smiles so caringly when all she sees is discomfort in the chemo room. Her warmth fills the room and she always has something special to say to every patient.
My clouds are brilliant on the inside and dashingly good looking on the outside. All four of them would put a lot of ramp models to shame!!! Ahem!!! :-))
I labored through each phase of the treatment, but 3 weeks after the treatment, as I look back today, I feel as if I am floating on my clouds.
Doctors are not God, and I know not what lies ahead of me. For the moment as I float happily on my clouds, I can only say the two little inadequate words “Thank You!”
When I first encountered each of my doctors, I was terrified. Dr. Siddharth Sahni, the young onco-surgeon had had the unenviable task of telling me that I had cancer. I could have killed him then….I wanted to tell him that he was insane. Pradipta and I felt that we were getting buried alive in a tunnel. Dr. Sahni talked to us, guided me through the various tests, revealed the exciting contents of the Pandora’s Box and helped me to accept the dreaded “C” disease. He operated on me, was with Pradipta every time that he could get out of the OT and was like a dear family member who stood by us all the way.
Six weeks after the surgery, I graduated (not floated) to the second level of treatment. Dr. R. Ranga Rao is the onco-medicine genius. After having been pampered by Dr. Sahni, I dreaded meeting any other doctor. But soon after the first meeting, Dr. Rao erased away my fear. He is such a thorough professional, yet so gentle! His positivity is infectious and it makes me believe that things just cannot go wrong! I have shared my stupidest worries with him and have only received serious, genuine answers to them. He gives the most brilliant medicines to sort the various problems which crop up along the tortuous path of chemo therapy. I told him so one day. He smiled awkwardly and simply said, “Thank You.”
I survived (not floated) through 4 months of aggressive chemo therapy. I began on radio therapy treatment under Dr. Subodh Pandey. I was petrified when I first saw the gigantic machine. But Dr. Pandey and his terrific team helped me through. I was on the dreaded machine for 31 days. Dr. Pandey gently fore warned me of difficulties and advised me on how to tackle them. I trudged (not floated) through the treatment.
Dr. Ruchika Khetarpal is my beautiful cloud. She takes care of the chemo therapy centre. It amazes me how she smiles so caringly when all she sees is discomfort in the chemo room. Her warmth fills the room and she always has something special to say to every patient.
My clouds are brilliant on the inside and dashingly good looking on the outside. All four of them would put a lot of ramp models to shame!!! Ahem!!! :-))
I labored through each phase of the treatment, but 3 weeks after the treatment, as I look back today, I feel as if I am floating on my clouds.
Doctors are not God, and I know not what lies ahead of me. For the moment as I float happily on my clouds, I can only say the two little inadequate words “Thank You!”
Wednesday, October 6, 2010
BETCHA ‘TIS HAIR RAISING!! :-))
Poor you! You do not notice exciting things like I do!! I have inculcated this wondrous habit of noticing precious things like “hair”!!! Now, now!! There is no need to turn up your nose.
I see beautiful straight hair, sexy curly hair, elegant wavy hair, exciting frizzy hair, long hair, short hair, manageable hair, unmanageable hair, plaited hair, coiled hair, clipped hair, bobbed hair, cropped hair, styled hair, unkempt hair, coloured hair, streaked hair, salt and pepper hair, grey hair…..exhausting, but it is all about wearing or not wearing hair!!!
Instead of gazing at all the beautiful things around me, I have been gazing longingly at “hair” if you please! I am almost an authority on hair now, and have enough research jotted in my mind to write a voluminous book titled “THE LONG AND SHORT OF HAIR”!
Beauty parlors at every turn of the road beckon us. Thick eyebrows are so unacceptable, and need to be threaded to the perfect arc. If a miniscule strand of hair on the upper lip or the chin is spotted, it is imperative to uproot it. Little strands of body hair? Oh, how disgusting! For Heaven’s sake, rush to get them waxed!! When women have facial hair, it is unelegant. When men have facial hair, it is macho.
We are almost never happy with our lot. When women have straight hair, they wish for a curly top and labor tirelessly to achieve it. On the other hand those with a curly nest get their hair ironed and whatever else to straighten it. Men who want to make a style statement sport long hair. While another lot of the same sex thinks that, that looks unkempt and dirty. They much prefer the close cropped clean George Clooney look.
Samson lost his strength when Delilah chopped off his hair. When Eve was seducing Adam, she fluttered her eyelashes and flicked her curls and thus taught women the art of seducing. Men often pat their mops when they want to impress the she-devil. As I gaze around me, I realize that hair talks. It speaks volumes about a person’s psyche.
Just be careful with your hair, you poor dear souls!! Remember it talks!! You worry for me? No, there is absolutely no need just yet. You see, I have miniscule eyelashes struggling to sprout out, thin eyebrows coyly revealing themselves and a salt and pepper fungus gently covering my pate which cannot even whisper. Steeped in this hair raising insight I am still patiently waiting for a vociferous growth!! I promise to keep you posted as soon as it twitters!! :-)))
I see beautiful straight hair, sexy curly hair, elegant wavy hair, exciting frizzy hair, long hair, short hair, manageable hair, unmanageable hair, plaited hair, coiled hair, clipped hair, bobbed hair, cropped hair, styled hair, unkempt hair, coloured hair, streaked hair, salt and pepper hair, grey hair…..exhausting, but it is all about wearing or not wearing hair!!!
Instead of gazing at all the beautiful things around me, I have been gazing longingly at “hair” if you please! I am almost an authority on hair now, and have enough research jotted in my mind to write a voluminous book titled “THE LONG AND SHORT OF HAIR”!
Beauty parlors at every turn of the road beckon us. Thick eyebrows are so unacceptable, and need to be threaded to the perfect arc. If a miniscule strand of hair on the upper lip or the chin is spotted, it is imperative to uproot it. Little strands of body hair? Oh, how disgusting! For Heaven’s sake, rush to get them waxed!! When women have facial hair, it is unelegant. When men have facial hair, it is macho.
We are almost never happy with our lot. When women have straight hair, they wish for a curly top and labor tirelessly to achieve it. On the other hand those with a curly nest get their hair ironed and whatever else to straighten it. Men who want to make a style statement sport long hair. While another lot of the same sex thinks that, that looks unkempt and dirty. They much prefer the close cropped clean George Clooney look.
Samson lost his strength when Delilah chopped off his hair. When Eve was seducing Adam, she fluttered her eyelashes and flicked her curls and thus taught women the art of seducing. Men often pat their mops when they want to impress the she-devil. As I gaze around me, I realize that hair talks. It speaks volumes about a person’s psyche.
Just be careful with your hair, you poor dear souls!! Remember it talks!! You worry for me? No, there is absolutely no need just yet. You see, I have miniscule eyelashes struggling to sprout out, thin eyebrows coyly revealing themselves and a salt and pepper fungus gently covering my pate which cannot even whisper. Steeped in this hair raising insight I am still patiently waiting for a vociferous growth!! I promise to keep you posted as soon as it twitters!! :-)))
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
