This particular practitioner was different to other doctors I had encountered in the past. He was gentle, soft spoken and spent more time with his patients than others I had known. He also explained the problem to his patients in a way that didn’t baffle them with medical mumbo jumbo. If I had to see a doctor at all, then this is the one I would always choose.

So when I told him my symptoms he said “we’d better check if there are any nasties there.”

“Nasties?” I’d never heard that expression before and I assumed he was referring to parasites. That made sense! If I had somehow ingested some kind of parasite and it had been sharing my food with me, or worst still feeding on me from the inside, this would certainly cause weight loss.

The good doctor recommended I undergo some tests: Chest X-ray, ultra sound, blood tests. A bit extreme I thought. Anyway, I booked it at a local centre and underwent those tests. The following day I returned to work as usual.

A week later I returned to the doctor. He went over my blood test results and pointed out some the results that were over the normal range. He indicated there was a “nasty”. By this time I realised this no longer referred to parasites but to something else altogether. He also said my X-ray showed emphysema.

I was in some kind of a daze, and the first thing that came to my mind was “Well, I’ll get to travel to the other side and discover what’s there!” The “other side”, life after death and reincarnation were all topics I had taken an interest in, and had become part of my graduate studies. I was referred to two specialists: One was a haematologist, the other an oncologist. Both these specialists concurred there I had some kind of “nasty” and that more investigations were necessary to determine exactly the kind of nasty it was. A day was set for my admission into hospital.

At this stage I thought I’d take a break from my job. I remember it had been more difficult to gather the energy to get into my day’s work. On a few mornings I’d sat in a nearby park after my bus and train ride to absorb some sunlight in the hope of absorbing some energy. I remember the weather having been excellent. It was bright and sunny, and early enough in the day for it to not be too hot.

Staying home offered little relief. I didn’t have to contend with the public transportation, which I suppose was a good thing; but then I was there with that underlying feeling of malaise, the confusion between hunger and lack of appetite, and the weakness.

Next week: Part 3. “The Hospital”

Author is a cancer survivor and webmaster of http://www.mindbody.biz

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But this new journey was to be very different from the rest, with more dark twists, turns and elements of the unexpected then any of the others. This new journey began in January 2002.

I was then Assistant Supervisor in the Vitamin section of a very busy Pharmacy (Drug Store). I had just been promoted to this position after 12 months as a casual employee. It seemed to be taking a while to adjust to this new role, earlier starts, staying back to close the store, the commuting back and forth. I kept reaffirming myself “I’ll get used to it!”

Even when I heard a comment from the pharmacy manager via a colleague “is Alfred all right? He’s lost a lot of weight.”

“Yes I’m all right! Just getting used to it, another couple of weeks…”

The weeks went by, I was still losing weight, feeling tired, appetite was either absent or there was a craving for something specific that I just had to have!

One evening on the bus going home I started to cough, and cough and I felt nauseous. I got home, ran up the stairs, and just managed to get to the bathroom, where I vomited heavily. During the night I was sweating profusely, waking up completely drenched. Nevertheless I kept going: Catching a bus to the city in the morning, hurrying to the railway station, and then a train for the rest of the trip. So it went on, five days a week.

I had no energy to pursue anything after work. I’d get home, if I was hungry I would eat, but that’s it. I refused invitations from friends to go out, wouldn’t even meet them for a drink. One Saturday morning, I could hardly get out of bed. I felt so flat, could hardly eat, I stayed home, did nothing that weekend, but then returned to work on the Monday.

The thing is, I enjoyed my work; I was good at it. My training as a Medical Herbalist meant that I could consult customers, and help them choose the right vitamin or supplement, at times even handling complex cases. I enjoyed their interaction; I liked helping them and meeting their needs. I loved the feedback when I heard of some improvement in their condition. I liked keeping up with developments in natural health supplements, the expos, I liked my work colleagues, the business owners, everything! So I kept going.

Then one day my girlfriend confronted me with it. She was worried about my loss of weight. She knew I didn’t particularly like orthodox medicine, but she urged me to go and see a doctor. At first I refused, but I was coughing more, sweating more at nights, feeling weaker and weaker. Eventually I relented.

Next week: Part 2. A Visit to the Doctor.

Alfred Bellanti is a published author and webmaster of http://www.mindbody.biz

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Articles on health and fitness abound, therefore this article should provide more interesting reading for you, the more discriminating and sophisticated reader.

This article will lead you along a different path, a path already traveled, but not commonly so; and definitely more enjoyable! You will benefit by not being one of the crowd, and find more comfort and solace in being an individual, with plenty of time to yourself, and with no real ties or commitments.

This is all you have to do:

1. No matter what time you wake up, start your day with a cigarette. And I don’t mean low tar, low nicotine, go for the strongest and best. Keep a pack beside your bed so you won’t interrupt your flow by having to get up.

2. After your first cigarette you may want to consider getting up. But no too fast now, nothing faster than a slow crawl. Head for the kitchen a make yourself a nice, STRONG cup of coffee. Beware of Decaf and use only full strength!

3. Once your coffee is ready it’s time to light up your second cigarette, and enjoy this with your first cup of coffee. Of course no cup of coffee is complete without a second and it also provides the opportunity for another cigarette. See! All this and you haven’t even left the house.

4. Avoid establishing good bowel habits. Spend more time drinking coffee and smoking cigarettes. This way you’ll be sure you’re running late for work, and you won’t have time to clear your bowel, setting the way for chronic constipation.

5. Never walk to work! Always drive to make sure you get a daily dose of road stress, you know, that great feeling that accumulates from sitting behind the wheel, stuck in traffic!

6. Make sure you drink more coffee during the day, soaked up with lots donuts and followed by a cigarette each time.

7. For lunch, be sure to have plenty of deep fried foods, the ones that are still dripping while they reach your mouth, and make sure you eat plenty, and eat it fast, that way indigestion will be unavoidable. After all why should you deprive yourself the joy of taking Antacids?

8. On your way home smoke plenty more cigarettes in the enclosed space of your car, this adds to the accumulation of road stress and ensures maximum absorption of passive smoke as well.

9. Once at home, reward yourself with half a bottle of whiskey. Order pizza, especially the one with pepperoni, cabanossi and other processed meat. Finnish the other half bottle of whiskey with your evening meal, topped up with a few beers.

10. Flop yourself down on the lounge in front of your TV, making sure you have your remote beside you, your cigarettes, and more beer before you flop, otherwise you may have to get up again.

11. After you’ve fallen asleep and woke up again a few times, head for your bed, go to sleep and have plenty of nightmares.

12.In the morning, start all over again, as in Step 1

Alfred Bellanti is a published author and webmaster of http://www.mindbody.biz

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