I still do not know what fate awaits me, but it now looks much brighter now than before.
This after the totally unexpected quadruple bypass heart surgery I underwent a week ago at the Makati Medical Center. It turned my world upside down, but better days loom after I was discharged on Tuesday.
While lying down in bed at the hospital, I started pondering about life and what happened to me. For one, I could not do anything else, and since I have been writing about sports for the last 42 years, I analyzed the situation as a sports struggle, both for individual athletes and teams alike.
Again, I turned to my often-cited mantra of “Understand-Accept-Adjust” to be able to face life and the belief that for athletes and people in general, attitude and skills will be the major factors in success, with attitude the more important one.
When you experience not being able to poop or pee by yourself without help, that is a humbling experience indeed and it happened several times to me. Humility is something athletes need to learn.
That was also the time the feeling of helplessness was so great that the sense of hopelessness naturally followed, resulting in bouts with depression. I went through the same thing.
Athletes who suffer major, possible career-ending injuries have gone through the same experience, and again this is where attitude trumps skills.
Just like the situation that I was forced to take, those small wobbly steps outside my room as part of the physical rehab the first few times, breathing hard all the time and feeling tired, too, and wanting to just quit and give up. This is another common experience of athletes under rehabilitation.
Determination is the attitude that will carry one over this psychological challenge as it did with me, using the motivation of seeing my only “apo” Livi in the house once more.
And what about a team’s struggles? First for my family as they had to adjust to the current situation with my three kids taking turns being with me in the hospital, understanding and accepting their given roles as dictated by the situation.
Then, the team of doctors led by attending physician Dr. Paul Quetua and Dr. Mon Diaz, who did the actual operation. I look at them as the coaches and the team of nurses and orderlies, who took care of my daily needs including washing me after I poop. Special mention to Jude, AJ, AC, Joy, Christine, Rejoyce, among others, who did their work without qualms or hesitation. Hats off to these people, who did the spade work.
Lastly, in the dramatis personae cast of a sports struggle situation, the fans and the supporters, yes, the Lord allowed me to live, but did it through these people who offered the words of encouragement; the prayers, sharing inspiring similar stories like mine; and the sponsors, the people who provided the badly needed financial assistance to me and my family. They are too many to name and I believe they know, who they are and did not offer help to claim the credit they deserve. Thank you, people.
Now, I start working with another team from the hospital’s cardiac rehab and therapy section, another struggle by itself, but then after what I just went through, this should be a breeze.