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Will ya stop harassing me about my decision?

So, I made a decision recently that apparently has the whole world and my whole staff reeling. I made the executive decision to give my own personal patients my own personal cell phone number to be able to contact me after hours. I know what you are thinking. What…the…hell?!

Now, let me explain. I gave all the options like 25 years of chances. I gave out all my correct contact info to my hospitals multiple times over the last 25 years, often specifically with me myself showing up to all the departments and hand giving and directly communicating my correct contact info both verbally and in some kind of printed form, while watching the personnel actually change it on the computer or in some kind of antiquated roladex.

Still, I move out of everyone’s line of sight for a minute with cancer number two and suddenly everyone has lost or forgotten all my contact information! They were giving my patients an old house phone number, that I haven’t had in over 15 years. Then, they were giving out my office fax number. Well, no one is going to be able to reach me with that one either. Or, they were giving out my office number, where no one is after hours. This happened even after I re re went back and reshared all my actual contact information myself to all these departments and places. So, in the meantime my patients suffered, there was miscommunication, and my patients had to pay for all these errors in communication, and, I knew nothing about it until it was too late each time.

So, I finally came to the decision that enough is enough. I am not busy delivering babies anymore. I have my phone on me at all times. I can fully answer any questions or solve anything in minutes no matter where I am or what I am doing, and the patients benefit from that. Barring the occasional time where I would miss an actual call, they can text me and make sure that I get their message in a different way. I am planning to stick with this plan. So far it is working out much better and I can provide explanations and comfort in a way that no one else can. I am ready to pull my pants up and do my job and do my best due diligence for my patients. I have made it clear that my number is for urgent matters only and so far patients are following that guideline. I think I am going to stick with it.

Dr. Katz

You have to try this place!

I was at my regular and now routine oncology appointment, to once again establish that I am once again cancer free…still! This appointment I finished in record time so I figured out I would have plenty of time to finally visit one of the famous brunch places in Detroit. I won’t even mention their names because all of you probably already know. You know, the places that don’t take reservations, don’t have set parking options, and make you wait a long time, for what I am sure is excellent food. Well, I tried to get to all of those places without success. They either had no available seating, no parking, or the wait would be at least an hour and a half.

So, I decided to throw caution to the wind and randomly pick a new place that had only existed for just over a year, and turned out to be just down the street from the hospital where my appointment was. If only I had pre realized that they had their own parking lot I would not have had to wrestle with the Park Detroit console for so long. Nonetheless, I paid for a spot and made my way down the street to the restaurant.

Wow, I walked in and it was truly charming. The menu was awesome. The people were friendly. The food had a lot of variety and was amazing, The whole atmosphere was very welcoming and not at all pretentious. The service was great. My entree was the non-loaded shrimp and grits with a brown sugar iced shaken espresso. Wow! Basically what I’m saying in a nutshell is, you gotta try this place! Now get your butt in there!

Dr. Katz

Get RID of post op restrictions? I think not.

As most of you may or may not know, I have to renew my board certification for obgyn on a yearly basis, often with a multitude of articles and modules that require completion and a series of tests to take. I think they think that it is a good reminder to stay invested and keep up to date. I personally feel that I am capable of that on my own without paying exorbitant fees, but oh well.

Anyway, I regret to say that it is rare that one of these required articles contains information that is either brand new to me or significantly useful. Most of the time I am looking at them and having to read them for credit and just go with that approach. Some of the articles I feel are downright potentially harmful. I need to tell you about one of them.

Most recently, I read an article in a very reputable journal suggesting that we abandon all post op restrictions. Post op restrictions are the what I feel is very necessary guidelines to maximally assure a good recovery after surgery. They include things like holding off from sexual activity for six weeks. No lifting, pushing, pulling anything over a full gallon of milk for six weeks and no driving for a car for at least one week. Yes, I know, it potentially sets a patient up for ultimate boredom and frustration. You are watching your house get dirty. You are watching your kids run amuck. You are missing out on your normally awesome cooking, etc.

However, having said that, I have found that, in my almost thirty years of experience, that these recommendations, while not popular, are the way to go. It is my way of helping to ensure a good recovery for my patients. So, I read this article, claiming that all these recommendations are anecdotal/heresay at best and have no scientific evidence or backing. This article also says that there is the same change in intrabdominal pressure with getting out of a chair as lifting something heavy. I am sorry, but that cannot possibly be true.

So, I started doubting myself. I thought maybe I am being too strict. Maybe these “experts”( that probably haven’t treated an actual patient in years) were right. So, I gave it a try. I gave up the post op recommendations for one set of surgeries for one day. You know what happened? Two of my patients ended up bleeding after wrestling with a dog or picking up their kids since they couldn’t stop….and one ended up back in surgery after tearing their vagina open. That was a definite turn off for me. I guess my anecdotal self realizes after thirty years that not all incisions are created equal. I can see that with a visible abdomen incision you might get a heads up if you are about to make a big mistake and tear your incision open. With a vaginal incision, there is nothing you can monitor visually and no good prior warning signals you have to to tip you off before it’s too late.

The bottom line is, I tried to follow this nonsensical potentially dangerous advice and it backfired almost immediately. So, we are officially BACK to the post op restrictions!

Dr. Katz

The next scan is coming up…again

Guys, I can’t help it. There is like a little internal panic clock that starts ticking once I get within 2 weeks to a month of my next scan. I know they are all necessary. I also know that I have no concrete symptoms to tell me that anything is wrong. And yet, I still go off the rails somewhat. I swear to god I start having or making up some symptoms just due to anxiety. I know, that sounds ridiculous, but it is true so I might as well admit it. I have gotten much better about calming myself down without pharmaceutical assistance tho, so that part is good.

Do any of you out there who have or have battled cancer before go through this? I know the answer is probably yes but I am just asking anyway. How do you deal with it? I am wondering to myself if it will ever go away. I have yet to actually make it to a 5 year post cancer mark with either of my cancers. I am almost there from my first cancer in 2021, but still not quite yet. It’s interesting that I hardly ever think about that one like it’s old news or something. It was still serious but very treatable. It’s almost as if the most recent brain cancer that I had overshadowed everything. Even tho it, too, was treatable thank goodness.

I have had many people tell me that I have no right to call myself lucky since I have had two cancers. I have had many people tell me that at least I had ” the good kind” of cancers. I am not always sure how to filter that input so I just end up smiling and nodding, and then walking in the other direction. As I have had time to think about it, I think that my own personal take on it is a combination of those two inputs.

Yes, I do think that I am lucky that I was able to successfully battle both of those cancers. I think of myself more in terms of a warrior than a survivor, because I do not think that my ongoing vigilance will ever truly be over. I will always have to be on the look out, recent stem cell transplant do over not withstanding. I know that sounds crazy to say and seems like I am not celebrating at all, but actually I am celebrating. I celebrate every single day the fact that I get to wake up in the morning, open my eyes and realize the world around me.

As far as the having the good kind of cancer part, I am not really sure what that would be. I do not think the words good and cancer belong in the same sentence. I would definitely go with the word treatable though. That kind of thinking sometimes sends me in the wrong direction. I start belittling the kinds of cancer that I had because I was able to conquer them when other do not. I know I shouldn’t do this. I realize that the battles I fought successfully were extremely difficult and that nothing should be taken away from them just because I survived. Each cancer battle is it’s own challenging and potentially vicious beast. The strategy that I have chosen to take when I find myself minimizing what I have been through is to throw myself into empowering, helping, and supporting others with cancer. I think it is my best strategy at this point.

So, to all of you out there who have battled, are battling, or know someone who is battling cancer, I sent out all my positive, empowering, and strategizing energy to you. If there is anything that you need or any way you think I could help, I will.

Have a fantastic day everyone.

Dr. Katz

Bubbling over

I am just sitting here before going to the office, dogs by my side, sun shining and birds chirping. I just complete an order for my office for supplies with no issue. I am looking at my bank account and we are finally doing ok after years of struggle.

It has been a tough four years. I have battled two cancers and then advocated and helped save my husband’s life in between those two cancers. I have struggled financially, digging out whatever personal credit card I could find while I was managing two businesses from my hospital bed and trying to do whatever I could to make sure my employees were ok.

All …completely…worth…it. I know some people would say why did you do that? Well, because I wanted to find whatever way I could to ensure that something was there to come back to when I was well again. Yes, I incurred a lot of extra debt along the way, but now, I get to be healthy and I get to still have a work place to go to to take care of women of all ages every single day. This is a real hard earned/blessing combo. I realize that it required an extraordinary amount of effort and creative thinking in addition to the cancer battles.

But, here I am now, sitting here enjoying even the tiniest of successes. Everything has elevated in importance and significance. I realize that I already knew this before, but I cannot deny that my investment in health, safety, joy, family, and success has magnified. I am so happy that I still get to be here to experience it. I had an eagle fly over me the other day, which is yet another potential indicator of success and good fortune. I’ll take it!

Have an amazing day everyone.

Dr. Katz

I’m trying to thrive!

Hey there. Dr. Katz here. There is something I just need to get off my chest. First off I wanna say I get it. The last four years have been an on and off hell status due to crazy health stuff. I realize that we have all put each other through worrying and sleepless nights. I also realize that we have taken turns wondering if the other person was even going to live. This is all crazy intense stuff with lots of after effects, heightened and sometimes unnecessary worry, and a periodic sensation of waiting for the other shoe to drop. Yep. It’s all true. We have been through things that other families might not even survive from.

Yet, here we are, still plugging along every day. I for one am incredibly grateful and I feel blessed. I actually get to get out of bed every morning and know that I actually have another chance to stare at the sky and face whatever experiences are coming. It is no longer a feeling of drudgery or fear each day. Yes, I still have some remaining worries and fears, but I am more able to push through them.

I feel ready to thrive and embrace every single moment, probably with an intensity that most people could not match. Yes, I understand that too. With the help of a great deal of therapy I have finally realized that that is ok! If I feel like taking on a challenge or participating in an activity, it is ok if I go for it even if the people around me aren’t ready. That is not the equivalent of me actually excluding people. It just means that I am ready to move forward and cherish every moment and experience that I get. The bottom line is, I am going to make a promise to myself to no longer feel guilty for my need to take advantage of every single experience old or new. I will still keep inviting everyone along and hope that they want to metaphorically come. But, if they don’t, that’s ok too. They are just moving at a different pace. Right now the singular thing on my mind still lingers at the forefront and in the back. If I don’t capitalize on any opportunity that interests me, there is a chance that I might not get it back. So, onward I go and I welcome anyone to join me at any time.

Dr. Katz

Is Halloween really associated with the devil?

Having noted a recent post by the leader of the church of Satan, I noticed that everyone started freaking out. The post went something like this. It was a thank you to all Christians allowing devil worship at least one night a year. It didn’t specifically reference Halloween, but we all know what he meant.

So, every body started freaking out and declaring that their children would never trick or treat again and that’s why they stopped them in the first place! Oh sweet Jesus.

Ok, now let’s take a minute and put our brain caps back on and discuss the actual history of the evolution of the commercially popular Halloween that we have today.

Ok, here we go. Halloween is an annual holiday that is celebrated on october 31st. It has roots in an ancient Celtic festival of Samhain and the Christian observance of All Hallows’ Eve. What? Christian roots as well?! More modern celebrations include things like trick or treat, costumes, and carving pumpkins and haunted houses. This has become a commercialized culture of celebration of horror and the supernatural, hopefully all in good fun.

Let’s take a closer look at the Celtic roots. This holiday traces all the way back to Samhain which was an ancient Celtic festival that celebrated the end of summer and the harvest and the onset of the new year. Participants used to light bonfires and wear costumes to ward off ghosts and spirits. There was no devil worship involved.

Now let’s talk about the Christians. Halloween evolved when the Christian Church designated November 1st as All Saint’s Day way back in the 8th century. So, then the night before became All Hallows’ Eve which then further evolved into the Halloween that we know today. Even Halloween today incorporates some of the original Samhain traditions.

Let’s go further and talk about the Irish and Scottish influence. Actual trick-or-treating that we know today started with Irish and Scottish immigrants in the 19th century and this practice became a more mainstream even by the 20th century.

So, before you go freaking out and stopping kids from collecting candy while wearing a costume, take a step back and realize that Halloween as we know it today, or even in the past, has nothing to do with Satan or the Devil. Last time I checked, Satan himself used to be a fallen angel so there is a religious background there as well.

Having said all that, I will be wearing my costume this year and handing out candy and spreading joy and spookiness to my neighbors and all the kids that come by.

Happy Halloween folks!

Dr. Katz