Question

3. Drawing on your personal experience (relatives, friends, acquaintances) and your clinical experience, list examples of people who: a. Recovered from a life-threatening illness, contrary to the expectation of their physicians. b. Recovered from a serious illness through medical intervention, such as surgery, only to develop symptoms of another serious illness within a year. Refer to one of the examples you listed above and consider what factors may have contributed to the recovery. What traits characterize that person?

4. List several routine stressors that you have experienced or can expect to experience over the next year. Examples could include a reduction in work hours, a speeding ticket, an unexpected home repair, or a breakup with a significant other. Although it is normal to feel frustrated or angry when events like these occur, how can you take a positive approach to each of the situations you listed rather than dwelling on the negative?

Answer 1

a. I would cite an event of my elder sister who was diagnosed with a life-threatening brain tumour. It was too large in size and after knowing it, she had to go for a surgery as there was no other option left. Surgery removed the tumour in the brain and she was well, after a few weeks of the surgery. After one year the tumour reappeared at a fast pace and again she had to undergo the surgery. This was a really stressing moment as nobody was expecting second surgery. Finally, she got operated and became well, after a few weeks. This was not it, as once again the tumour grew at the same place again after six months. This time neither the physicians were too hopeful nor anybody wanted her surgery to get along. Physicians suggested that surgery for the third time could have certain side effects or probably the body would not resist it. She was too hopeful and with this kind of positivity she underwent the surgery against the beliefs of the physician, but again she came out well, though she had to face certain complications like meningitis after surgery and a little paralyzed muscles of the left hand. But with strong hope and immense will power she crossed all hurdles and even opted for chemotherapy and today she is all normal.

b. This happened with the same patient`s case history mentioned above. After the third surgery, the surgery site got so vulnerable that it oozed cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). Even the doctors initially were not able to understand what exactly is happening. One of the physicians suggested that it is not the CSF, but its the dirty fluid left in the brain after surgery and it needs to be sent out. They literally helped to drain the fluid outside the body by means of thin tubing. That didn't work out as the brain was getting devoid of CSF, also it got infected by meningitis bacteria and she suffered from high fever. It got very complicated then and we thought that we will lose her. Physicians became hopeless and she suffered fever to about 105-degree Fahrenheit. She went into a comatose state. Finally, the physician who operated her tumour could find a way out and after suffering for about fifteen days in a row he put a power bandage on the site of surgery through her forehead, that did work out as the fluid stopped coming out from the site and to recover completely she had to wait six long months. She is still having a very bad scar left on her forehead as a result of the tying up the power bandage,