I feel supported

I feel supported – So many times we need support. When do you really feel supported? What do others do to help you feel supported? What is the main support they offer? Perhaps it is a medical professional or a family member. Tell the story of feeling supported in your life.

I choose to take a wildcard today because while I love riding my bicycle, it would be a small blog if I just wrote, I love riding my bicycle. Instead, I thought I would look at one of the prompts that really caught my interest almost from the beginning of #RAblog week.

I feel supported

It might seem obvious that I feel supported when I am around my wife Sheryl. We have been a couple for 42 years and married 41. As much as Sheryl supports me, Sheryl is not the subject of my little essay.

I feel supported when I see Sheryl being supported. We do not talk much about how those we love also need support in the RA journey, but they do. For instance, when I go to have my infusion Jill my infusion nurse tells Sheryl it is ok to leave, an approximate time to return and she gives her a call about 45 minutes before I finish. Also, I know that during the day Sheryl calls in and speaks with Jill to see how my day is going. Since I am sleeping I cannot talk to Sheryl during the day (the drug makes me terribly ill if I am not sleeping out). In these small ways Jill may be helping Sheryl, but she is supporting me.

I feel supported when a doctor treats Sheryl with kindness. True, she is not the patient, but she is way more than along for the ride. When a doctor takes time and talks to Sheryl, they are more than just answering questions, they are supporting our effort to live with RA.

Examples of great support

1. Adequate parking
2. Decent coffee
3. Listening to her when she says something is wrong here
4. Pleasant surroundings

Examples of poor support

1. People who tell her to wait here for no apparent reason
2. Doctors who fail to talk to her when she asks a question
3. Rotten coffee
4. Dangerous surroundings.

I enjoy most people I come in contact with and when enjoys the presence of medical personnel then they are doing more than just being nice, they are supporting me.

On the day this item is posted, I will be asleep getting my infusion. I can do that with confidence because I know Sheryl is being taken care of. Jill will do what Jill does. She will laugh with us, and go about her work in a terrific fashion and for that I grateful for me, but I am thrilled the way she supports my wife Sheryl. I know while I am fast asleep Sheryl can go shopping for that perfect bargain, knowing I will be fine, because Jill is supporting us both.

Sheryl and I are together in this fight. I might have been diagnosed with RA, but we share its burden. When Sheryl is supported I am supported and vice versa. We are in this together, we deserve to be supported as we live. As a team.

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