Complete-Listen-5991

Thanks! I thought I would be carpe dieming the shit out of every day based on all the things I've heard, but it seems the mind is surprisingly stubborn at returning to the default mode of taking things for granted. In fact, until recently I had quite a dark period psychologically where I didn't value my life in the slightest. It seems paradoxical after all of the sacrifice made by myself and others to keep me alive, but I think it was an aftereffect caused by the trauma of the experience. On a positive note, the experience has helped me massively at conquering anxiety. Taking better control of my mind was essential to get through it all, and those skills carry over to my day-to-day life. I also find that I'm more compassionate, less judgemental, and more focused on what really matters in life.

I was very, very impressed with the level of care I received in ICU and have the utmost admiration for those that work there. It was on a whole different level to what I'd received previously in oncology and urology wards. The pain control was fantastic and at no point did I feel neglected. If there's any critique, and this is clutching at straws a bit, I feel they could've been more careful with covid, but this was back in last March and things have obviously changed a lot since then.

About £850. Had to get a private ultrasound for my initial diagnosis to get the ball rolling because the GP told me it would take weeks to even send me a letter giving me an appointment date for a scan, and this was when I basically had a watermelon sticking out of my belly. Also booked a private consultation with my surgeon in the early days to hurry things along. The NHS saved my life and I am forever grateful, but if I was passive and didn't get that private scan, treatment would probably be delayed a month and based on how aggressive the cancer was, I don't think I would be here today. It's important to understand their limitations.

The first thing I think related to the cancer that I noticed was a sharp intermittent pain in my right ribcage about 6 months before diagnosis. The next thing I noticed, about a month before diagnosis, was that I was bedbound with nausea after drinking a few beers at a BBQ. Next, around the same time, I developed a hydrocele. For those that don't know what it is, it's basically a fluid filled sack in my ballbag. Inflated them like a balloon. I was losing weight around this time, and at the same time as my belly fat was going down, a bulge started emerging in the ribcage near to where that pain was. It protruded further and further quite rapidly.

The final sign was that the extreme sharp pain in the ribcage that kept me up all night. This happened twice very shortly before diagnosis, once caused by stretching and another by squatting (yes, I was still doing heavy belted squats with a bulge coming out of my belly. I was insane.) On reflection, these were a LOT of indicators that something was up and I was still stubborn enough to wait before getting checked as long as I did. Cancer is all about early detection. I hope my experience can be a lesson to others to take an active role in checking for cancer.

Mostly I'd like to have a family. Thankfully I took a visit to the sperm bank before treatment began, so fingers crossed there. I'd love to get back into powerlifting, as this was a passion of mine before the diagnosis, though it's proving a big challenge physically. I'm not gonna break any records, that's for sure, but I'd like to realise whatever my new potential there is. I'd also like to travel more, maybe move away from the UK, somewhere warm.