Encouragement Plus Coaching

One Sock at a Time

By Susan Hiller

From The Encourager Newsletter Issue#003 August 2003

SYNOPSIS: A family faces a challenging situation with courage and humor. Written on July 16, 2003.

The phrase "Take it one step at a time" is a message I have received more often than I care to think about. Now, I really have to keep that in mind and practice it fervently. I have just been diagnosed with colon cancer and I am trying to take all the necessary steps that are needed at this time.

The short story is, I went to have my physical and was called back for another blood test. My iron count was low and my internist was concerned. I was told that I am iron deficient anemic. What exactly did that mean? Did I need to just take an iron supplement?

Yes, and more! I was told by my internist that I would need to take an iron tablet three times a day. And I should have a colonoscopy. At the time that is all I knew. I didn’t know that my iron deficiency could be a sign of something really bad.

The next step was having a colonoscopy. I was given something to relax me and then an injection put me out -- that is, almost out. I could hear instructions from the doctor to the nurse to move something this way and that way. I remember telling them they were pushing my stomach. They replied that this was necessary to move the instrument around. "Great," I thought, "I'm at their mercy."

I "woke up" pretty quickly. I was still dazed when the doctor said the words I never expected to hear. "You have a polyp that doesn’t look good and I've taken a sample of it for a biopsy." I repeated what he said by rote, then said, 'What's next?" He told me to wait until the next day and we would know more then. Also he told me that I would have to have surgery. No matter what the outcome of the biopsy, the polyp would have to be removed.

The next day, I very quickly found out what was to happen. It was cancer and my internist and the gastroenterologist had gotten together and found a surgeon for me. I went to the surgeon the following day and we then scheduled my surgery for Wednesday, July 30th, two weeks away. To complicate things, my husband, Richard, was scheduled for back surgery in five days.

Now, I really had to get into action and prepare my family as well as myself for this shocking news. While I was going over all the little details in my mind I wondered how I was going to do the laundry. Richard was having his surgery and was not supposed to lift anything heavier than a phone book. I discovered that I also wouldn’t be able to lift anything heavier than a phone book. So how were we to do all the things that are called for to run a household? Out of the blue, I came up with the answer: We’d have to take one sock at a time downstairs to the washing machine. So that's how we are going to live for the next few weeks following my surgery -- one sock at a time!

Update August 29, 2003. Susan was diagnosed with colon cancer on July 8, 2003. She has since had surgery and other treatment, and the cancer is now in remission. Early detection and quick action were key factors in her successful outcome. And Richard has survived the ordeal, too!

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