Say some prayers for Mike Sands. He posted an update about his condition on Facebook and well, things aren't looking too good for him. He wrote:
You guys have been pressing for an update for awhile now, and I’ve been slacking. Normally, I like to update when there is good news to share. Today will not be that day.He posted this update on September 11:
This vile, menacing, plays-by-its-own-rules disease has literally taken my legs out from under me. Roughly a week after back surgery last month, I began experiencing weakness in both legs. Within days, I couldn’t even use a walker to get around. My legs are incapable now of bearing any weight. I’m largely bedridden, and I need a wheelchair to get anywhere. My doctors theorize this could be the result of general wear and scarring from three back surgeries in nine months time, or things are becoming compressed in my abdominal cavity by tumors to the extent my back muscles and/or nerves are being pinched.
Treatment-wise… it’s Hail Mary time. I’m penciled in to visit Sloan Kettering in New York to hopefully qualify for some sort of clinical trial. We’ll see what becomes of that.
I’m already feeling the burden I’m placing on my parents. And I hate it. They’re two of the most beautiful people in this world, and never deserved this fate of seeing their oldest son deteriorate before their eyes. To have to lift him to so much get him out of bed. They’re both retired and should be enjoying that life instead of taking care of me.
Ultimately, I think big decisions could be coming soon. I’m not frightful of that; yet, at the same time it destroys me. I’m 34 years old. I turn 35 next month. I should be in Jackson cutting it up with Melissa as the city’s favorite anchor tandem five nights a week. I should be showering my daughter with the love only a father can give. Instead, I lie here dealing with this harsh and cruel fate, incapable of doing either.
Thank you for your continued prayers
7 comments:
Profoundly sad. I had never heard of this person (I don’t own a television), but I plan to go to early Mass this morning and pray to St. Jude for him. The Hell on this earth he is facing is unimaginable. (For non-Catholics: St. Jude intercedes for us in seemingly hopeless causes).
Death, as well as life, is sometimes, if not often, a cruel process. As a Christian, I have found that faith based on Christ is the only way to survive the process. With Him, there is always hope; whether in this life or the hereafter.
Brave man.
Mike seems like a genuinely good guy with a strong support group of family and friends. I’m sure he has very good doctors and perhaps they will be able to find him some relief. As an atheist, it’s posts like these that give me comfort in knowing no matter our choices or circumstances, there is a randomness which can not be controlled that can strike down anyone at any time. There is no point in dwelling on those things that we don’t have the knowledge or ability to fix. We must enjoy the time we have and make the most of every minute we can spend with those we care about. C’est la vie!
Amen to 6:33s comment.
From what I read, they really can't give him any relief.
I've followed this story from afar for a bit, through his initial diagnosis when he was working in Greenville, through him getting told by his Mississippi docs, his time was limited, which in concert with the kerfuffle with ex-g/f, was the impetus for him to move back home, earlier this year.
I had a friend who valiantly battled cancer for 5 years, and I know from that experience when there has not been an update for a while, it is never a good thing. I had hoped he was too busy enjoying life to provide an update, and while this message could be anticipated, it did little to lessen the impact of the punch to the gut.
I know he feels like a burden to his folks, but he is fortunate to be surrounded by love and support at this time, instead of being in a "foreign land", battling alone. No one should have to endure this, either by having it or having to support a loved-one for is suffering. I hold out hope that the next doctor appointment will give him some good news.
May God grant him, his loved ones and his daughter with grace, comfort and peace in the days to come.
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