The PET Scan

Yes, I had the scan - for me it was traumatic, but a large part of that was psychological. For one thing, it was very early in the morning, and my sleeping pattern (apparently determined by cirrhosis) makes an early get-up very difficult indeed. I won't expect to hear from the doctor who ordered the scan for a couple of weeks, which is fine with me because I hardly expect good news. I have a very small but caring support network, and I think they're about all I have left to look forward to. Even so, not one of them is "live in" or able to drop everything to take care of my house and dog. Normally, someone with say, a close family, can reasonably expect the family to jump in and take over, so that the ONLY thing the invalid has to deal with is recovery. However, in my case, should I be hospitalized, a whole bunch of other - many major - problems will arise. Who will pay the bills (the money is available but someone has to actually DO it), who will take care of the dog? Who will maintain the property? Who will make sure that all the food doesn't rot in the fridge? Who will bring me things at the hospital, books, underwear, etc? Who will buy the dog food and insert it into the dog? Who will take care of ME when I'm released? The simple answer is NO ONE. Which means that in addition to concentrating on recovery, I will have the impossible task of handling things I CAN NOT DO. The worst stress known is caused by problems without solutions; if animals are given insoluble problems to deal with, they die because of the stress. People are not much different. So what it means is that when I see the doctor who ordered the scan it will be, essentially, a death sentence EVEN IF THE MEDICAL PROGNOSIS IS GOOD! I wish I had a solution. I don't. But many thanks for asking. Somersault