GLeason 3+3 vs Gleason 3+4

Logical words Don. thanks. Not falling on deaf ears.

Logical words Logostadt - I think. ;-) Seriously, thanks to you to.

Mel.
Guess what tomorrow is.... 3 weeks and counting to my first PSA test.

UH-0H

Curious Pratoman? will you be having the stdard psa test or an ultra sensitive psa test?

@Mel, yes, Tewari does a six week test, then another 6 weeks later.

@logos, not sure, didn't ask, but I would assume it will be the ultra sensitive

I don't like getting the 6 week test, I'm afraid it will show detectable PSA, I will flip out and have to wait another 6 weeks to find out if it's real. But I'm gonna do what Fr Tewari's office tells me to do.

Oh, and I forgot, you and I are going to die from something, right? No one gets out alive, right? The point being: wouldn't it be a ***** if all of this useless worrying caused you ( or us )other health issues, the ones that are way more likely to kill you or me, to worsen?

Oh my, I hope I am not simply giving you something else to worry about, LOL! But surely not! Since all rational folks here know that we are going to die of something in the next(on average) 10 or 20 years, if not tomorrow. And most likely something other than PC is going to get us.

But, I know you are not worried about death, so much as possible future Treatments and QOL. (but also, don't forget we don't know what wonderful discovery might arrive in the next year or two! ) But the point is, if you keep killing yourself with worry, you might speed up other negative processes. I have mentioned my friend before: gets PC in late 40s. Has surgery. Has penile implant. Dies of a stroke at 51, like my father did at 48. Not that I think worry was his problem. But it turns out he never had to worry about PC because a stroke had his number. We just never know what's next.

Don't get me wrong: I have had my share of fear and worry and grief since all of this happened. But like you, I have to fight against the devils in my brain that love to take me where I should not ever go. But there was a very wise man who once said something like this: “For this reason I say to you, do not worry about your life, as to what you will eat; nor for your body, as to what you will put on. For life is more than food, and the body more than clothing........... And which of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life’s span? If then you cannot do even a very little thing, why do you worry about other matters?".
I really think there is a very good point within those words. Now if I can just practice what I preach!

Post Edited (BillyBob@388) : 1/27/2015 10:43:30 PM (GMT-7)

Very good comments on this thread.

But it is hard to really internalize all of that good stuff.

For example: I know worrying is not going to do a thing for my PSA score. It will be what it will be. Yet, I get nervous and worry anyway (not healthy to do that).

The fact remains we are all wired in certain ways. Many of us are Type A's.That helps us in many life areas. But not in waiting for test results!!

Mel

MEL, you hit the nail on the head. We are all wired differently, and it's not something that's easy to control.

Jack, I'm the opposite. I'm a type A, but at work, interacting with my staff, and others in my organization, I'm pretty mellow. Focused on getting things done , but not at all high strung, and I don't worry much about what I can't control .

I've given this q lot of thought, since it's clearly an issue for me, that could affect my health otherwise, and my ability to enjoy life from here forward. I really believe I could control my emotions much better, if it was just me, in a vacuum. Or even my wife and I.
I know , being 64, my life expectancy x PC is about 20 years. And I know, that people do get sick it's a fact of life that we all must accept.
But what I have a hard time with, is the thoughtvif my kids, even though they are grown, in their early 30's, seeing me sick, or worse. They've experienced illness and even death, of grandparents, aunts and uncles, etc. But we are a particularly close knit family, as I'm sure many others are, and it would , no , it will, be devastating to them, if something happened to me. I've been given a gift of 64 years without a serious health issue, up, till now, and they look at me as if I was invincible, even now.

That's what I have a hard time with.if it was just me, I could deal with this much more easily. Instead, I'm a lunatic, and put on a good front when my kids are around.
I guess it's the idea of them not having me to depend on when they need me.
Maybe I'm wrong, but I think that's my big issue.
I'm sure I'm not alone in thinking this way.

Same for me. I feel I can whine a bit and express my fears here much better than with people I know, except for my wife, and a few close friends and family. (But not my kids)

Pratoman said... But we are a particularly close knit family, as I'm sure many others are, and it would , no , it will, be devastating to them, if something happened to me. Pratoman, here's a newsflash.  Something IS going to happen to you.  You are going to die; but it won't be from prostate cancer.  You're 64 and you are just now having your first thoughts of your own mortality?  That's pretty good.  I think it's clear that you haven’t come down from the shock of your still-recent “big-C” diagnosis yet (it was only a few months ago…it was just November; this is January), but I can tell you very confidently that you are not going to die from prostate cancer.   You had a low-risk case.   Many people with case characteristics very similar to yours decide not to undergo life-changing aggressive treatment, and they aren’t going to die of prostate cancer either.   As you emerge from your “wall of shock,” I hope that you will also use this understanding to help shape a more balanced perspective on your own life.     You are worried about leaving your kids behind?      Then worry about the things that might shorten that.   Ten times as many men die from heart disease than prostate cancer…and you are not going to die from prostate cancer.   Cut down on red meat, fats, sugars.   Use sunscreen.   Floss.   Travel.   Eat delicious, healthy food.  Drink red wine.  Laugh.   Love.     Worry?   Worry about the right things.   Worry about whether you are spending enough time with the ones you love.   Have you taught your children well.   Have you forgiven others for ancient missteps.   In the end, will the love you take be more than, equal to, or less than the love you make?  Life goes on...I think you've already said this yourself.     I wish you Godspeed in coming down from the shock of your still-recent “big-C” diagnosis so that you can get a more balanced perspective on your years ahead.   It sounds very much like you deserve that, and your family deserves that.  

LoL. I cant believe you are still fretting over all this P-Man. There is one sure fact about life and that is none of us will get out alive.

That said here is a serious bit of advice/information for you. In February 2013 I lost my father. I then spent the year with the very unpleasant talk of trying sort out his estate the way that he wanted. It was a total mess and I had to use three lawyers to help me. That year I got myself into a total mess and for no real reason, because the lawyers were doing a brilliant job. But like you there was always the "what if" issues bombarding my brain.

Come December 2013 things were almost sorted, but then I got the news about my PSA from my doctor. None of this could be finalised because of the fast approaching Christmas holidays so had to play the waiting game until January. Then by the end of January with just one week to go before things got completed on my fathers estate I spent the week in hospital, because within 48 hours I lost the sight in both eyes!! Yes, it is true. After many tests they found the reason "Conversion disorder" Check it out. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conversion_disorder.

The neurologists said it was almost certainly caused by all the stress and worry that had been caused during 2013 and could not guarantee to what level my sight would return, if at all!!! Luckily by May 2014 it had pretty much returned to normal, but even today it is not perfect, especially in bright light settings.

My doctor warned me that I had to "de-stress my life" because it could happen again and next time I may not be so lucky. She said the body has so many ways of dealing/showing stress and although fairly uncommon "Conversion disorder" is just one of them. Wile I was in hospital that week there was an old guy who had just lost his dog. The only friend and company he had. He was much worse than me. He lost the sight in both eyes, the use of one arm and was unable to move his mouth!

I don't think I ever told you about all this. It is not something that I wanted to talk about, because at the time it scared the life out of me thinking I COULD be blind, or worse.

Honest P-Man, you MUST stop all this before something snaps!. Take a break from all this PC stuff and start to enjoy life................ I could go on, but I don't want to get myself in a state right now and put myself back to where I was at the beginning of last year. At the moment my bum is hurting real bad, so I will concentrate on that. The last two days have been pretty stressful for me.

I am telling you all this not to scare you, but to show I care and worry about your state of mind right now and where it could lead.

Caspar, thanks for sharing those very personal details.

Prato, you really gotta look into this. . . . I know that it's not as easy as "o.k., I'll stop worrying about it." My ex-wife was manic/depressive so I lived through some of that stuff (NOT suggesting you are BTW). My point is you do have a major issue that you really should think hard about addressing. Dude - you did more due diligence and research than pretty much anyone else I've seen, chose "the best" practitioner, and are now in recovery mode. Trust me, PCa ain't gonna be the grim reaper for you - but the stress just might make his visit sooner rather than later.

So between Caspar and me, how's the cold splash of water to the face feeling? (:

Take it easy bro. . . . . . . .

Im telling you, you are just encouraging the behavior!!!!!!