Monday, September 12, 2016

A Stray Observation That May Compromise the Emotion of Some

In looking at an election season that resembles the lobster quadrille in Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, when standard metaphors ["It's a train wreck.  No, it's a dumpster fire."] have been exhausted, I would offer one perspective based on over three decades of parish service when most of that time has been spent with the upper middle-aged and elderly, who often share their stories about chronic conditions, symptoms, medication side effects, and abilities while managing the same, that there is no shame in admitting to having a condition that requires treatment.

When I hear the explanations ["Overheated; just a cough; pneumonia; just a stumble, concussion, double-vision, fall, deep vein thrombosis, etc."], I can't help but see an entire segment of the population attempting to do what I've seen families do when a beloved member is stricken with a chronic disorder.  It does no good for the beloved to have his or her health issues minimized.

I know, too, that if I observed difficulty in ambulation, "freezing", a potential aspirational [as opposed to bacterial] cough and pneumonia, and some other symptoms in a parishioner, I would encourage them to see their physician for examination.  Although I would not say so to them, I would suspect Parkinson's Disease, frankly, as it's something that I've seen quite a bit of.

I would also point out that I've known many, many Parkinson's patients to be able to do their jobs and volunteer activities without extraordinary issues.  In fact, wouldn't it be rather helpful for a politician to use their affliction to demonstrate that such a diagnosis, when properly treated, does not mean a diminished life?

Ah, well, I'm assured by the media and the political class that no one currently running for the office of president has such a condition, so it really doesn't matter.