What i feel is most nightmarish about our cultures ideas about illness and dying is the idea that put most of our time, energy, and money into trying to save people from illnesses after they get rather than taking precautions to prevent them from being ill in the first place. I feel that Preventative medicine is something not taken seriously enough in today's culture, we talk about being healthy and eating well but how many of us actually do that? Illness like diabetes and obesity can prevented with a little exercise and a healthy diet. We spend so much time looking at electronic screen that we don't see what we have become. Then again the blame isn't fully on us but also on the people we let make our food. The food industry produces food with high amount of sugars and fat, only so they can try to make those same foods less sugary and fat by adding chemicals that make these foods even worse for you.
Thanks to this unit i have already had a much healthier diet and more exercise, also i have adopted the idea of detachment from Tuesday's with Morrie, Lately i have allowed my emotions to fully penetrate me causing me to be more outgoing and confident, which has allowed me to be in a much better mood. i am also taking away the idea that everyone dies (no matter what). I used to fear death but after this unit i feel an acceptance of it, which has also made me feel more confident in myself. Overall i just want to say this was a great unit and it did a lot for me.
Friday, January 21, 2011
Tuesday, January 18, 2011
HW 31 - Comments 3
To Arden: Arden i felt that this was very insightful. the amount of detail you used when describing each day with your grandmother made me feel as if i were there with you. my favorite line from this post would have to be "As children we are mostly shielded away from death. No one ever brings it up; no one ever wants to talk about it. Movies are restricted for those under aged. That what age is it ok to know? Is there a right time for an explanation? I remember one of the first thoughts I had about dying. I thought of sleeping almost as being dead, I continued to think that really being dead simply meant you never woke up." i felt this was so true, i agreed with you completely and had some of the same questions myself however the idea of age restrictions in movies was something that never crossed my mind and i like how you brought it up. I have always thought of sleeping and death to be similar, in fact i have always thought that sleeping and death were related somehow but thats just my opinion.
To Johnny: Johnny i really enjoyed reading your blog, i felt that it was rich with information i enjoyed learning things that i didn't know happened to you, i feel like i got to know you more as a friend and a classmate. For that reason my favorite line is "I asked her, was there a time where the doctors were unjust and didn't seem to care about your medical problem. She then responded by saying yes i have and she then told me how when she was in her mid 30's she didn't have health insurance and because of that everyone that worked in that hospital didn't seem to care about her or her medical problem. She told me how she had to wait about 3-5 hours just to get medical help." While reading your post i could tell that this is something difficult to write and i commend you for putting it out there, i agree with you on the fact that this is unfair and i feel it happens too much, my father bruised his ribs one time and had to wait 3 hours just to get an x-ray telling him he was fine and should just take pain killers, but the funny thing is the doctor gave him the pain killers before he knew what was wrong with him, which showed how much he "cared" about his patients.
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From Mr.T (Attic Person)- I think my biggest question to this post is Why? The message you haProxy-Connection: keep-alive
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ed is about hope and perseverance. To paraphrase: people diagnosed with terminal illnesses should accept death because only that will allow them to live a full life in the time they have remaining. My question would be: why do we want them to? The surface answer is obvious; we want them to enjoy themselves as much as they can while they can. But I wonder if there is another level to it. Are we getting something out of their good cheer and brave face as they contemplate death? How does it affect us if they do not maintain a brave exterior? How is being around a sad dying person the same and different from one who is at peace? Is it easier for us, the friends, the loved ones, society at large, to accept death if the dying person herself has already accepted it?
From Johnny- Sharif your whole blog waas very interesting intriguing and i could tell that you put alot of depth into this piece. The line that really stood out to me is, "She is starting to let the illness live her life for her." This reminds me of my grandmother because like yours she too is ill, acting differently and thinking differently giving me the idea that she is letting the illness live her life. This made me realize that as time keeps on going our grandparetns will keep on getting older and closer to death.
From Steven (basement person)- It is great that you are able to analyze the differences from detachment, and the process in which you get there. I also noticed that you used a very powerful quote, with deep analysis. It is also good that you can look at the causes of death, and make that a factor in your thought process. You have written this in depth, and it shows that you put a lot of thought into this. However, by viewing your story from an outside perspective and not having the same experiences as you, i disagree and think that i would always want someone by my side if i was in the hospital. I can see what your thinking, and understand why you wouldn't, but if a member of my family was in the hospital, i would want to be with them all the time.As you move on in this unit, i would challenge you to find more quotes from different sources. It seems that you have used "Morrie" a lot and you even used the same quote twice in this writing. I feel like it would make your writing a lot stronger if you had a bigger variety of sources. Overall-great work! I enjoyed read this.
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Comments regarding elevator speeches:
To Tamiko- Tamiko, I felt your speech was very confident. The way you presented yourself made me feel confident with you. You used a personal connection to a family member which i felt was very important to do when giving speeches in general, you want to make the audience fell with you and feel for you. The one part i especially liked about your presentation is the fact that you left me wanting to hear more, you didnt go into any topic too deep but deep enough that i wanted to hear and learn more of your project. The one thing i would suggest is to use statistics to help further support what your saying.
To Arden- Arden, I felt that your speech was great, in fact it was my favorite. You kept me engaged the whole time by using your personal connection (your grandmother). i felt apart of your presentation as if it were connected to me as well. I had read your blog before hand but i would have definetly gone to read it if i had not read it before. the one specific thing that i liked about your presentation was your prop. the picture you had of your grandmother pre-cancer really got to me. In the picture you could tell she was happy and healthy. the other thing i liked was that you mentioned your grandmothers belief on the after life which i not only thought was interesting but a good way to give us some insight into your grandmother,
To Johnny: Johnny i really enjoyed reading your blog, i felt that it was rich with information i enjoyed learning things that i didn't know happened to you, i feel like i got to know you more as a friend and a classmate. For that reason my favorite line is "I asked her, was there a time where the doctors were unjust and didn't seem to care about your medical problem. She then responded by saying yes i have and she then told me how when she was in her mid 30's she didn't have health insurance and because of that everyone that worked in that hospital didn't seem to care about her or her medical problem. She told me how she had to wait about 3-5 hours just to get medical help." While reading your post i could tell that this is something difficult to write and i commend you for putting it out there, i agree with you on the fact that this is unfair and i feel it happens too much, my father bruised his ribs one time and had to wait 3 hours just to get an x-ray telling him he was fine and should just take pain killers, but the funny thing is the doctor gave him the pain killers before he knew what was wrong with him, which showed how much he "cared" about his patients.
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From Mr.T (Attic Person)- I think my biggest question to this post is Why? The message you haProxy-Connection: keep-alive
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convProxy-Connection: keep-alive
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ed is about hope and perseverance. To paraphrase: people diagnosed with terminal illnesses should accept death because only that will allow them to live a full life in the time they have remaining. My question would be: why do we want them to? The surface answer is obvious; we want them to enjoy themselves as much as they can while they can. But I wonder if there is another level to it. Are we getting something out of their good cheer and brave face as they contemplate death? How does it affect us if they do not maintain a brave exterior? How is being around a sad dying person the same and different from one who is at peace? Is it easier for us, the friends, the loved ones, society at large, to accept death if the dying person herself has already accepted it?
From Johnny- Sharif your whole blog waas very interesting intriguing and i could tell that you put alot of depth into this piece. The line that really stood out to me is, "She is starting to let the illness live her life for her." This reminds me of my grandmother because like yours she too is ill, acting differently and thinking differently giving me the idea that she is letting the illness live her life. This made me realize that as time keeps on going our grandparetns will keep on getting older and closer to death.
From Steven (basement person)- It is great that you are able to analyze the differences from detachment, and the process in which you get there. I also noticed that you used a very powerful quote, with deep analysis. It is also good that you can look at the causes of death, and make that a factor in your thought process. You have written this in depth, and it shows that you put a lot of thought into this. However, by viewing your story from an outside perspective and not having the same experiences as you, i disagree and think that i would always want someone by my side if i was in the hospital. I can see what your thinking, and understand why you wouldn't, but if a member of my family was in the hospital, i would want to be with them all the time.As you move on in this unit, i would challenge you to find more quotes from different sources. It seems that you have used "Morrie" a lot and you even used the same quote twice in this writing. I feel like it would make your writing a lot stronger if you had a bigger variety of sources. Overall-great work! I enjoyed read this.
_________________________________________________________________________________
Comments regarding elevator speeches:
To Tamiko- Tamiko, I felt your speech was very confident. The way you presented yourself made me feel confident with you. You used a personal connection to a family member which i felt was very important to do when giving speeches in general, you want to make the audience fell with you and feel for you. The one part i especially liked about your presentation is the fact that you left me wanting to hear more, you didnt go into any topic too deep but deep enough that i wanted to hear and learn more of your project. The one thing i would suggest is to use statistics to help further support what your saying.
To Arden- Arden, I felt that your speech was great, in fact it was my favorite. You kept me engaged the whole time by using your personal connection (your grandmother). i felt apart of your presentation as if it were connected to me as well. I had read your blog before hand but i would have definetly gone to read it if i had not read it before. the one specific thing that i liked about your presentation was your prop. the picture you had of your grandmother pre-cancer really got to me. In the picture you could tell she was happy and healthy. the other thing i liked was that you mentioned your grandmothers belief on the after life which i not only thought was interesting but a good way to give us some insight into your grandmother,
Sunday, January 16, 2011
Terminal Patients all over the world go through this process of dying but how does it affect them psychologically. Should these patients acknowledge the fact that they are going to die or simply ignore it and hope it goes away? According to the New York Times article “Palliative Care Extends Life”, Dr. Harvey Chochinov, Professor of Psychiatry and Family Medicine at the University of Manitoba stated that “"We found that depression was about three times greater in patients who didn't acknowledge their terminal prognosis,". Although patients are obviously told that they have a terminal illness 10% still deny it. Everyone needs hope, it is a human emotion that most of us have experienced, it’s that feeling you get when you see something beautiful, truly beautiful and think that this could last forever. Albert Einstein once said “Learn from yesterday, Live for today, Hope for tomorrow.” I believe he was trying to express the idea that you don’t know what the future is going to be like all you have is the experiences from your past so use them today to make the future as bright as you can.
Tuesdays with Morrie expressed the psychological effects of being diagnosed with a terminal disease very well when he discussed detachment, he said “… detachment doesn’t mean you don’t let the experience *penetrate* you. On the contrary, you let it penetrate you *fully*. That’s how you are able to leave it”. Most terminal patients do not accept the fact that they are dying or even have a terminal illness so it is impossible for them to detach; detachment will allow those in denial to process what they are going through and eventually move past it so that having a terminal illness is only a part of their lives, a part that is managed and controlled as if it were a diet.
In the United States there are a recorded average of 380,791 deaths from heart disease, which is the leading cause of death overall in the United States (Cancer.org). I have a family member overseas in Egypt who has recently been diagnosed with heart disease and has since then allowed me to interview her. When we first discussed this topic, it was about a month after she had been diagnosed and you can still tell that she is a bit uncomfortable with the topic of dying in general. I could see the door to her apartment open in the background, something that I have never seen, when I confronted her about it she said something that honestly shocked me, “I’m going to die anyway so why should I care about my safety.” After that I decided to give her a few days to relax and not think about Things. Two days later I talked to her again, I told her about the research I was doing specifically the idea of depression and how it can happen in those who have terminal illnesses. She was depressed and as far as I could tell not getting any better. This feeling of sadness not only for her but for her family has engulfed her. She is starting to let the illness live her life for her. The last time we talked I told her about the idea of detachment I discovered in Tuesdays with Morrie and she said that she would try it but wasn’t optimistic on the chances of it working. During this interview and the research on this project I learned a lot about the mental affects of having a terminal illness and not just the physical, I specifically learned about the effect denial can have on the process of the being able to past the realization that you have a terminal illness and the effects after wards. This reveals the idea of hope and hopelessness that is very common among those with terminal illnesses in today’s culture and also shows that we deal with problems in our lives by not dealing with them at all and simply pretending they do not exist. The psychological effects of being diagnosed with a terminal illness matters because no one should have to live in a state of depression were not only their lives are hurt but their families as well, when it is just as easy to accept the fact that you have a terminal illness and try to live your life to the fullest.
Saturday, January 8, 2011
HW 29 - Reading and noting basic materials
Dying is a process; this process can include many erratic changes. When someone dies they are subject to their environment; their friends, family, physician, choices, etc... However none of this changes the fact that they are going to die. The guest speaker described the care she gave to her husband towards the end of his life at home and told us about how arduous of a task it was because of the intimacy involved. The film Sicko interviewed a mourning widow who stated the health care system that was supposed to help her husband let him die because the medicine that would have saved/ prolonged his life was "experimental". In Tuesdays with Morrie, Morrie discussed "detachment", he says that “… detachment doesn’t mean you don’t let the experience *penetrate* you. On the contrary, you let it penetrate you *fully*. That’s how you are able to leave it” (104). People die differently, however the fact that they die does not change.
People in hospitals today are isolated from the outside world when they are dying or have an illness, in fact hospitals are similar to prisons in some ways, there security guards and constant surveillance of patients. This of course is all for the well being of the patients but similar to a prison nonetheless. An Article on the Analysis of the stressful effects of hospitalization and source isolation on coping and psychological constructs found that "hospitalization results in many negative feelings that have detrimental effects on psychological well being and coping. However, more significantly, infected subjects who were isolated demonstrated feelings of anxiety, and depression that were significantly higher, and feelings of self esteem and sense of control that were significantly lower." Retirement homes are an easy place for people to be isolated; in fact it is a technique that some nurses use called "Forced Isolation" (1). An article from IQnursing homes described this form of isolation as "a form of psychological nursing home abuse, which is also known as mental nursing home abuse. Isolation occurs when nursing home staff members refuse to give residents any attention or give them only the silent treatment."(1) Isolation can affect how a person feels about dying, however will not affect whether they die or not.
I have gone through my own personalProxy-Connection: keep-alive
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xperiences with illness and dying and I can say first hand that having a support system and people you care about around you is both a positive and a negative. When I had appendicitis I was in the hospital for a little more than a week, and my parents were there the entire time. There were moments in which I felt ashamed, I didn’t want my parents to see me like that and even more I didn’t want to see the expression of pity on there faces when they saw me. However there were sometimes in which I was really glad my parents were there, they got me food and water, changed the channel on the T.V. and gave me a psychological boost at some moments after the surgery. I felt that after I got out of the hospital I had somewhere to go, and that I wasn’t just a wasted space. I interviewed a family member in Egypt a few days ago for another assignment and I remember her saying that "I can't detach, to feel all these emotions to their full capacity and then die never to feel them again would kill me by itself." Which was a response to Morrie’s comment from Tuesdays with Morrie “… detachment doesn’t mean you don’t let the experience *penetrate* you. On the contrary, you let it penetrate you *fully*. That’s how you are able to leave it”. Looking back I found myself trying to distance myself from those around me because I didn’t want them to see me like that because of the reason that I could not detach myself. Detachment would have been too difficult to accomplish not because of the fact you need to allow the emotions to penetrate you fully but because you would have to let them go in the end, and that was something I don’t think I was capable of achieving.
People in hospitals today are isolated from the outside world when they are dying or have an illness, in fact hospitals are similar to prisons in some ways, there security guards and constant surveillance of patients. This of course is all for the well being of the patients but similar to a prison nonetheless. An Article on the Analysis of the stressful effects of hospitalization and source isolation on coping and psychological constructs found that "hospitalization results in many negative feelings that have detrimental effects on psychological well being and coping. However, more significantly, infected subjects who were isolated demonstrated feelings of anxiety, and depression that were significantly higher, and feelings of self esteem and sense of control that were significantly lower." Retirement homes are an easy place for people to be isolated; in fact it is a technique that some nurses use called "Forced Isolation" (1). An article from IQnursing homes described this form of isolation as "a form of psychological nursing home abuse, which is also known as mental nursing home abuse. Isolation occurs when nursing home staff members refuse to give residents any attention or give them only the silent treatment."(1) Isolation can affect how a person feels about dying, however will not affect whether they die or not.
I have gone through my own personalProxy-Connection: keep-alive
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xperiences with illness and dying and I can say first hand that having a support system and people you care about around you is both a positive and a negative. When I had appendicitis I was in the hospital for a little more than a week, and my parents were there the entire time. There were moments in which I felt ashamed, I didn’t want my parents to see me like that and even more I didn’t want to see the expression of pity on there faces when they saw me. However there were sometimes in which I was really glad my parents were there, they got me food and water, changed the channel on the T.V. and gave me a psychological boost at some moments after the surgery. I felt that after I got out of the hospital I had somewhere to go, and that I wasn’t just a wasted space. I interviewed a family member in Egypt a few days ago for another assignment and I remember her saying that "I can't detach, to feel all these emotions to their full capacity and then die never to feel them again would kill me by itself." Which was a response to Morrie’s comment from Tuesdays with Morrie “… detachment doesn’t mean you don’t let the experience *penetrate* you. On the contrary, you let it penetrate you *fully*. That’s how you are able to leave it”. Looking back I found myself trying to distance myself from those around me because I didn’t want them to see me like that because of the reason that I could not detach myself. Detachment would have been too difficult to accomplish not because of the fact you need to allow the emotions to penetrate you fully but because you would have to let them go in the end, and that was something I don’t think I was capable of achieving.
Tuesday, January 4, 2011
HW 28 - Comments 2
To Arden: Arden, this post was very touching and beautiful. I can honestly say that I feel as if I had gone to visit your grandmother with you (she seems like a wonderful person to be around). The amount of detail you put into describing her and the area you were in gave me a great picture in my head that made me feel even more a part of this experience. Your writing style has a way bringing people into what you’re feeling and experiencing especially when you say "I walking in and hugged my grandma. I did it gently barely really touching her. She was weak and frail and I was really afraid I was going to hurt her. She was so little; the chair she sat in cradled her. Her hair was pure white, some of her wrinkles enlarged by her glasses." I could feel my hands wrapping around your grandmother but not too touch but then again maybe because that is because I do the same thing when I hug my grandmother. This post was really nice.
To Johnny: Johnny, I can really relate to what you’re going through, my grandmother lives in Egypt so I do not see her very much but when I do I cherish every moment. The line I thought was beautiful was” Even though these stories usually take hours I don't mind one bit and actually enjoy them because I cherish the time I have with my grandmother because any day could be her last." I feel that this line is so true and to cherish every moment is the most logical and best thing to do. In 20 years if your grandmother is no longer around you will always have those memories of her and that will keep her alive forever.
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From Steven (Younger person): It is great that you and your relatives are able to discuss what might be a very fragile topic to many others so comfortably. You did an excellent job showing me your thought process as you were talking with your relative. I have lost a dog and 2 relatives during my life, but i was too young to really understand what it meant at the time. The conversation that you had with your relative seemed to have helped you further explore your thoughts on this topic. I think that it is interesting to have a discussion with someone who has not talked much about death before because you can see a fresh point of view.
From Mr.T: You make a key distinction between death and the process of dying. This is very honest and, I think, actually quite common. Many people are afraid of Being Dead because their religious centers have made them afraid of the prospect of some kind of eternal punishment. However, a more subtle and much more rational fear is the fear of losing one's vitality, of becoming Old and possibly Frail. If people examined their feelings more, I suspect they would agree with you.
I applaud your idea that having more time to discuss these issues would allow you to come to a better understanding, even if I don't agree with you. Seems to me (and I have never lost somebody close) that the only way to understand these feelings is to have experienced them - similar to being In Love. However, as an overall idea, I appreciate your notion that examining life and its feelings leads to greater clarity. I agree with that.
As you continue with this unit, I would challenge you to think further about the ideas of dying or serious illness as opposed to just being dead. This is not pleasant. Humans don't like to think of ourselves losing our power. However, if you can accept it, particularly at such a young age, hopefully you will be able to embrace the time you have even more.
From Johnny: your most beautiful line was in the final pharagraph.The way that you connected with Nadia is very interesting. It is as if with every question you asked you getting closer and closer with her. What really stood out to me was how you connected the way Nadia was acting to the way Morrie from the book "Tuesdays with morrie" was acting. The quote "i realized that nadia who once moved her hands around as she would tell me stories no longer does that (similar to Morrie in Tuesdays with Morrie)." Made me realize that you noticed every little detail about nadia and thus by doing that you were able to connect this to Morrie.
To Johnny: Johnny, I can really relate to what you’re going through, my grandmother lives in Egypt so I do not see her very much but when I do I cherish every moment. The line I thought was beautiful was” Even though these stories usually take hours I don't mind one bit and actually enjoy them because I cherish the time I have with my grandmother because any day could be her last." I feel that this line is so true and to cherish every moment is the most logical and best thing to do. In 20 years if your grandmother is no longer around you will always have those memories of her and that will keep her alive forever.
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From Steven (Younger person): It is great that you and your relatives are able to discuss what might be a very fragile topic to many others so comfortably. You did an excellent job showing me your thought process as you were talking with your relative. I have lost a dog and 2 relatives during my life, but i was too young to really understand what it meant at the time. The conversation that you had with your relative seemed to have helped you further explore your thoughts on this topic. I think that it is interesting to have a discussion with someone who has not talked much about death before because you can see a fresh point of view.
From Mr.T: You make a key distinction between death and the process of dying. This is very honest and, I think, actually quite common. Many people are afraid of Being Dead because their religious centers have made them afraid of the prospect of some kind of eternal punishment. However, a more subtle and much more rational fear is the fear of losing one's vitality, of becoming Old and possibly Frail. If people examined their feelings more, I suspect they would agree with you.
I applaud your idea that having more time to discuss these issues would allow you to come to a better understanding, even if I don't agree with you. Seems to me (and I have never lost somebody close) that the only way to understand these feelings is to have experienced them - similar to being In Love. However, as an overall idea, I appreciate your notion that examining life and its feelings leads to greater clarity. I agree with that.
As you continue with this unit, I would challenge you to think further about the ideas of dying or serious illness as opposed to just being dead. This is not pleasant. Humans don't like to think of ourselves losing our power. However, if you can accept it, particularly at such a young age, hopefully you will be able to embrace the time you have even more.
From Johnny: your most beautiful line was in the final pharagraph.The way that you connected with Nadia is very interesting. It is as if with every question you asked you getting closer and closer with her. What really stood out to me was how you connected the way Nadia was acting to the way Morrie from the book "Tuesdays with morrie" was acting. The quote "i realized that nadia who once moved her hands around as she would tell me stories no longer does that (similar to Morrie in Tuesdays with Morrie)." Made me realize that you noticed every little detail about nadia and thus by doing that you were able to connect this to Morrie.
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