Alternative Therapy (Updated)

My friend Ramesh had to undergo a major surgery for a serious back problem at a five-star corporate hospital specialising in Cancer treatment. A biopsy after the surgery revealed that he was suffering from Multiple Myeloma in an advanced stage. Doctors wanted to start him on chemotherapy and other related treatments. Having heard that the treatment is worse than the disease, he took a bold decision that he would look at alternative therapy. He was already a believer in naturopathy and his Bangalore-based doctor agreed to treat him and promised him that while he may not be able to cure the disease at such an advanced stage, he could at least contain the disease and prevent it from spreading fast, thus giving him the chance to continue to lead a comparatively normal life. Of course, he had to submit himself to a strict regimen of diet and herbal medicines. His wife supported his decision and helped him adhere to the regimen. Whereas the cancer specialists had predicted that without the chemotherapy treatment, he would not live for more than six months, he lived for more than three years, leading as normal a life as he could. During this period, he attended all social gatherings and visited  the USA to spend time with his children and grandchildren. Only in the last two months, he was bedridden and was looked after at home by a full-time attendant/nurse. No ICUs and no life support system.  When his time was up, he made a peaceful exit from this world, surrounded by his family. I believe, besides the treatment, his immense faith in the alternative therapy kept him going.

 I want to share my own experiences with alternative therapy. When I was only thirty-eight, I was diagnosed with glaucoma, a dreadful eye disease that can lead to blindness if not treated in time. The eye specialist told me that I would have to live with specific eye drops for the rest of my life and that if the problem worsened, he would perform surgery. The drops had exactly the opposite effect of those used for dilating your eyes when you go for any eye check-up. The result was that I found it difficult to read or drive my car. I was shattered! Instead of bottling up, I always talk about my health problems openly, so that someone can refer me to a possible solution.   A  good friend recommended that I try Magneto Therapy as it had cured his uncle of double vision when all other systems had failed. I found a person in Kilpauk who was a specialist in Magneto Therapy. I underwent the treatment for nine months, after which, when I went to the same eye specialist I had gone to earlier, for a check-up, he was surprised to find that I was cured of the problem. Of course, I had to strictly follow some instructions to prevent the recurrence of the problem, such as not to strain my eyes by reading books lying down or with very small typefaces.

 About twenty years ago, when I was diagnosed with kidney stones and recommended surgery, I found a solution through a grandma’s remedy. For six months, every morning, I took banana stem juice. When I went for a check-up, I found that the stones had vanished.  It is another matter that the mixer-grinder, which was used to make the juice daily, broke down under the stress of churning out the juice every day!

 During the peak of my career, in my late twenties and early thirties, I used to suffer from frequent attacks of mouth ulcers–sores on the tip of my tongue—making it very difficult to talk or eat anything. Each time, the allopathic doctor would give me a B12 injection and put me on a course of Riboflavin. That would give me only temporary relief. I was cured of this problem by another grandma’s remedy. As soon as I get the first signs of a possible attack, I would buy a bundle of ‘Manathakali Keerai’- a variety of spinach- make juice from the leaves in a mixer and take it first thing in the morning on an empty stomach. The very second day, I would get some relief. I have recommended this treatment to several friends with positive results. Recently, a long-standing stomach condition I was suffering from has been controlled through Ayurveda.

 Every time doctors recommended an urgent surgery for my other problems I have refused to go under the scalpel and found a remedy in alternative therapies. While my fissure problem was cured by Ayurvedha, I had to undergo  prostate surgery recently when it became impossible to postpone the decision. I believe in the theory–use Allopathy for diagnosis and emergency, but try alternative therapies for chronic problems. It has always worked for me.

Even if Allopathy, Homeopathy, and Naturopathy fail, I can always count on Venkatachalapathy and now Shirdi Saibaba, who entered my life four years ago. Miracles can and do happen in everyone`s lives. Om Sairam!

 

A Dragon of Hope

A book of poems by my daughter

 My younger daughter, Sowmya Srinivasan, a well-known professional storyteller, has been active as a blogger since 2008. She has been posting her poems on her blog (SOULspace – www.ssstoryteller.blogspot.com) since then.  This compilation of her poems, written over 16 years, features her thoughts as a stay-at-home Mother raising two busy children.

“This book is dedicated to my children, Uthara and Keshav, as they have always inspired me to look at the world in new and fresh ways and were instrumental in making me a Storyteller!” says Sowmya.

In the first Foreword to the book, Shreekumar Varma, Author, Playwright, Columnist, and Poet, says,” The titular ‘Dragon of Hope’ is like an interior dialogue that reaches out to us, reflecting on people, on a transactional, emotional basis, probably the musings of a storyteller.  “I am not a poet, yet I write poetry!” says Sowmya. As we pick out the gems from this collection, we will tell Sowmya: “Carry on, we’re waiting for more.”

In the second Foreword, Prof. Dr. Evrim Ölçer Özünel, a Storyteller, Friend, Believer in the power of words, says,  “Some books feel like old friends, you don’t just read them, you sit with them, laugh with them, and sometimes cry with them. `Dragon of Hope and Other Poems from My Life` is that kind of book. It doesn’t shout. It doesn’t try to impress. It simply opens the door to a life lived with deep feeling, gentle reflection, and quiet strength. Through these poems, Sowmya invites us into her world not just as readers, but as fellow travelers. You’ll walk with her through motherhood, memory, loss, love, and self-discovery. You’ll meet the child she once was, the woman she has become, and all the selves she has met along the way.” 

The book is in three parts:  Human Connections,  Earth Connections, and Ethereal Connections. There are  38 poems with comments preceding every poem, capturing the trigger and flavour of the thoughts ahead. They are also chronologically arranged. This 85-page handy book  with a cover design by my grandson  Keshav, is published by Creative Workshop and printed at Compuprint, Chennai. Priced at Rs 160, the book is available for sale now on Flipkart.

https://dl.flipkart.com/dl/product/p/itme?pid=9788198097057&lid=LSTBOK9788198097057JWPRXT

Copies are also available from Sowmya. She can be contacted on - Mob no.9731570615: Email id: sowmya03@gmail.com

`WE CARE` service

 In any Senior Citizen home, there are good Samaritans who are ever willing to help anyone who needs help. I want to share my recent experience in the Home where I live now.

I have been suffering pain in the Hip/Thigh joints during my morning walks for the last several years. I manage by taking short rest breaks and walking for 30 minutes. Since my return from Chennai more than a month ago, I find that this pain keeps recurring even during the daytime at home. I decided to consult a good orthopedic surgeon to ensure that I was not suffering from any silent bone injury during my recent accident in Chennai.  My good friend Bala in the community fixed the appointment with a well-known Orthopedist, who has a clinic located close by. Since my daughter, based in Coimbatore, was out of station, I accepted Bala`s offer to accompany me to the Clinic. He stayed with me for more than two hours until the examination was over and the doctor informed me of his diagnosis and suggested treatment. I was happy to hear that my bones were intact and that I was only suffering from stiff muscles, common among senior citizens. Since we were late for the scheduled lunch hours at the dining hall, Bala took me to his apartment in the complex, and his wife served me a delicious home-cooked meal. It was a wonderful gesture by Bala and his wife. I also found that Bala extends such help to a few other Super seniors in the community.

In the case of residents whose mobility is restricted and those who need assistance to get jobs done outside the campus or who are feeling lonely and don't have any near and dear ones in Coimbatore, there is a `WE CARE`- an informal group of volunteers in Phase 4 of Nana Nani.. It consists of able-bodied residents who offer their services to those who require some help. The resident has to post his or her problem in the WA family group of Phase 4, Someone in the group responds immediately and helps in solving the problem. In cases of emergencies where a resident has to be admitted to a hospital, such volunteers, if necessary, also act as caregivers until a family member comes and takes charge. Though this informal support system is not very active now,  able-bodied senior citizens like Bala continue to offer help as a service to needy seniors in the community.

 

In addition to the reliable medical facilities available on the campus, this kind of help from volunteers boosts the confidence level of those residents who are staying alone, like me, or old couples with mobility problems in the community. This is one more reason why senior citizens with children living abroad or in other cities in India could consider living in such homes, because there is better security and possibilities of getting an immediate response to problems faced by them. This could also be one of the reasons why there are many residents with their children staying in Coimbatore, living in the community.