By nature (you'll see what I did there) human beings are adaptive creatures. Based on Charles Darwin's theorizing, natural selection (and its associated adaptations) became the foundation of modern evolutionary studies. Our: bipedalism (ability to walk on two feet), opposable thumbs (which can touch the fingers of the same hand), and complex brain (which controls everything we do) - are classic examples of three adaptations that have helped us survive. My lifetime didn't encompass the changing of my appendix from functioning to digest cellulose to becoming obsolete, but since the inception of my Multiple Myeloma (MM), I have learned to "evolve" various aspects of my lifestyle and choices in order to live better with my cancer - since it won't seem to leave me alone.
- It may seem trivial, or more of a concession to chronological advancement: Holding onto handrails when walking up stairs and even more importantly when walking down them
- To stay ahead of any tummy turbulence: Making sure to have some kind of breakfast when taking my daily morning meds
- My peripheral neuropathy (CIPN) doesn't hurt or cause me any imbalance (yet): As prophylactic podiatric practice - always wearing shoes to help with stability, and avoid discomfort to my feet from a potential barefoot misstep
- I have employed this trick for many years (keeping a pad/pen on my nightstand), but now more than ever: Write things down, so I don't forget - like good ideas for blog posts that come to me at 2am :-)
- And probably the most challenging adaptation of all for me: Asking for help with obvious multi-person tasks (ie: lifting and toting) that I probably shouldn't have done on my own before, and definitely should not be doing on my own now - thank you, Bro-sens!
There are many aspects of my disease that I can't control or change. However, there are even more things (lots of little, daily, insignificant adjustments) that I have the power to change from can't-cer to can-sir. The responsibility is on me to realize that I have an as-of-yet incurable disease, but that there are myriad modifications that I can make to learn to live with my MM.
