Reflections at year 5…
On top of the world, amazing career, a perfect life
Until suddenly I wasn’t
Why me, why now?
But why not me?
Unable to stand, to eat, to sleep, to think
Where had I gone?
An end, and then a foreign uncharted path
Time eased some burdens, some persist, intensify
And slowly I emerge anew
Known strengths prevailed, unknown unearthed
Found out that I am truly loved
And that there is great Joy to Just Be.
Me.
Joan is a former pediatric emergency physician, medical school professor, and physician executive at the hospital where she worked before developing ME/CFS which forced her to retire. She was a typical Coloradoan filling her free time with biking, hiking, skiing, snowshoeing, scuba diving, and travel. Her love of the mountains led her to climb Mt Kilimanjaro, Mt Everest base camp, Patagonia, Alaska, and the Swiss Alps. Joan has been ill for 5 1/2 years and lives in Denver, Colorado. She now finds meaning in the powerful spirituality and beauty of nature and music.
This poem was shared at the ME/CFS and FM Awareness Day Virtual Event on May 11th, 2022.
#Hope4MECFS #Hope4FM #Hope4LongCOVID #MillionsMissing
Lucinda Bateman, MD, is a renowned clinician, researcher, and educator. Her Johns Hopkins University Medical School training instilled an approach to care that she has employed throughout her career - the patient comes first and the unknown or unexplained does not equate to a lack of proper and compassionate care. Since starting her own practice in 2000, she has served on six boards or committees, been the principal investigator for 45 studies, authored/coauthored 40 journal articles, served as adjunct instructor and adjunct assistant professor in the University of Utah Departments of Preventative Medicine, Internal Medicine, and Anesthesiology, and lectured around the world.