I once ... was blind, but now I see....

The title for this week’s blontry is a shout out to Rae. On Tuesday, she had cataract surgery. Since this is “our blog” she actually should be writing this but we have long since bought into the fallacy that if one of us is in India (me) it is his responsibility to write that week’s entry. It’s like there are no computers or internet connection in the US.

In any case, I am pleased to report that Rae’s surgery went very well. She is essentially 20/20 in her repaired eye. She has not had that kind of vision without contacts or glasses since she was a little girl. Now the question, given how positive the outcome, is how long she will wait to have her second eye done. She has surgery for the second eye scheduled. However, that would mean she would not return until mid-August. She may wait now until we are back in the States permanently. Part of that will be how well she deals with the visual ambiguity of one repaired eye and one that still has a cataract.

Well, I wrote last week that I would not write about my health again until there was a something significant to report. Since I can also use this report on our board meeting this week and reflect on traditional Indian medicine, I decided to go ahead.

On Tuesday, we had our board meeting. When Mr. Modi arrived, I asked if we should start. He said, “No, I want to talk about your health.” For the next few minutes he grilled me about my health, treatment, and prognosis. He then turned to Charu and said, “We need to get Phil together with Dr Uppoor.” He then went on to say the Dr. Uppoor is an MD and Ayurvedic (traditional Indian medicine) physician who had treated him and other members of their family. Dr. Uppoor’s clinic is in Goa. At first they were talking about flying be down there. Then he told Charu to see if Dr. Uppoor would be willing to fly to Delhi to meet with me. Once that was all settled, and only after it was settled we went on with the meeting.

I was very touched by Mr. Modi’s concern and his willingness to take action in my behalf. Since Dr Uppoor was coming to Delhi, anyway, the Modi’s decided to offer a consultation to other employees and their families. It was a generous act. Having now met with Dr. Uppoor, I am wrestling with what I heard. First a word about Ayurvedic medicine.

As mentioned above, Ayurveda or Ayurvedic medicine is traditional Indian medicine. Its roots go back thousands of years. Ayurveda does encompass surgery, in fact some of the earliest documented cataract, heart, and plastic surgery were done by an Ayurvedic physician in Varanasi. However, as practiced today, Ayurvedic focuses on the use of massage, medicine made form herbs, seeds, spices, and diet. There is an entire theoretical underpinning behind Ayurveda that is connected to Hindu thought and belief. But just as one does not have to believe the Hindu roots of yoga to benefit from its ability to improve flexibility and health, IF Ayurvedic treatment has value, it has value whether or not the theoretical underpinning is validated by science.

The question I am wrestling with is does the treatment have value? Dr Uppoor listened to my history; he reviewed the medical records from my treatment to date (remember he is an MD as well as Ayurvedic physician). After doing that, he said you do have an auto immune disease that is essentially rheumatoid arthritis. I know Ayurvedic treatment can cure you while all Western medicine can do is treat the symptoms. He didn’t want me to discontinue the medicine I am taking because in the short term the symptoms would get much worse again. He wanted me to come to his clinic in Goa for a 10 day course of treatment consisting primarily of massage and a specific controlled diet. However, it is best if someone go with me to assist me during the treatment. So, if I go, I will wait until Rae comes back.

In the meantime, I have trying to decide which dietary changes if any I should make. Based on Ayurvedic principles, Dr. Uppoor had a list of changes he thought I should make even if I don’t come to his clinic for a while. The problem is I have been researching the impact of diet on auto immune diseases and some of the things he is recommending are different from the current dietary recommendations in the US. There are certainly similarities but there are also pretty significant differences. If diet and/or Ayurvedic treatment can “cure” me or even significantly reduce my symptoms I am all for it. How to sort out what actually will help and what is irrelevant is hard to know.

What to do? What to do?

Namaste 

I'm doin' my yoga, And the world looks better standin' on my head

Today is Father’s Day in India as well as the US. If Father’s Day gets little attention in the US, at least compared to Mother’s Day, observance in India is essentially non-existent. In my case, my two fathers (Horace W Lundberg and Kenneth Whyte, Rae’s father) have passed on. I have been blessed in my life, in addition to these men to have others show me by example how to be a father. In this list I would include Jaron Norberg, Tomasue Abo, and my brothers in law. It is also a genuine pleasure to watch my son and sons in law grow into the role of father. They are doing a great job helping rear and guide our grandchildren. So, here’s to the fathers in my life. Thank you!

As noted, today is Father’s Day but did you know that it is also International Yoga Day? The United Nations has declared today, June 21^st to be Yoga Day. I am not sure how big a deal that is anywhere else in the world but here in India it is a freakin’ big deal. Well, actually, I guess it is officially a bigger deal than it is for the common man or woman.

It appears that every level of government has arranged some official recognition. The centrepiece was this morning at which 40,000 people assembled on the raj path (the official assembly grounds between India Gate and the Presidential Palace) to do a yoga session. It was designed to set a Guinness World’s Record. Prime Minister Modi addressed the throng, but didn’t participate. This despite the fact that he “practices yoga every day.” In that regard there have been articles published about the importance of people practicing in advance of official activities. There is great concern that it would not be seemly if people cannot do the asanas, or yoga positions, correctly. I guess it might become apparent that yoga is honored more in its breach than its actual observance.

There have been commercials touting Yoga Day and encouraging participation. Today alone I have received three texts on my phone encouraging me to do something to participate in some way. I guess not surprisingly, all of this attention has caused some backlash. Many Muslims are concerned about the pressure to participate in yoga activities. They correctly point out that yoga is not just exercise but is inextricably connected to Hindu theology. They are afraid that if they don’t participate, they will be viewed as not being patriotic. However, they are more afraid that if they do participate, they will violate the imperative to only worship Allah. So much for yoga being just a good form of healthy activity.

Namaste 

Yeah! Back to work again! Back to work for us! Joe...

The last two weeks the blog has focused on my health issues. It is not that I haven’t been working either at home or a few hours a day in the office, but it has not been the focus of my greatest attention. I am tired of thinking about my health issues. You are probably tired of reading about them. So, I will say I am seeing gradual progress and I am optimistic about the future. Having said that, I am not going to write about my health again unless there is a significant development.

So then, what will I write about? Today I think I’ll provide an update of the strategic changes that are going on at work. This is definitely a work in process and there is the occasional step back after a couple of steps forward. I will also say these changes have come through trying to reach consensus among the key players. I don’t think we have reached a true consensus, but we are close on some points. I used to work with someone who was fond of saying, “Here we stand with our feet firmly in the air.” That’s about where we are.

At the center of the uncertainty is the role of Modi Academic International Institute (MAII). Stratford University would like nothing better than for MAII to disappear. The joint venture organization has to exist but Stratford would like to have all public communication only include Stratford University. The Modi family has always been uncomfortable with that but it is only in the past few weeks that a compromise has emerged that seems to satisfy both partners.

In order to better tie all the Modi educational efforts together, MAII will be renamed as KK Modi International Institute (KKMII) in order to make it easier to co-brand/co advertise with KK Modi University, the name of the Indian University we are building in Chhattisgarh. This will not just be a name change. Although we will pursue becoming a proper Indian University ourselves, we will offer recognized Indian diplomas, advanced diplomas, and post graduate programs – roughly the equivalent of Associates, Bachelor’s, and Master’s degrees.  Students will be able to receive both our diplomas and Stratford University degrees with only some additional work.

This gives KKMII a legitimate reason for existence and for public communication. We are expanding that by articulating with other Universities than Stratford. There are many programs of interest that Stratford does not offer. Using the same KKMII structure we will offer joint programs in other disciplines and from other countries. In this way KKMII will become a vehicle for many jointly offered/articulated programs from across the globe. When combined with KK Modi University and the ability to thus also offer Indian degrees not just diplomas and there is a viable strategy.

Well, there are more initiatives I could cite but it may be that the details of what we are doing is a little too inside baseball for more than a couple of the blog’s readers. I just wanted to let you know there is life here and some interesting professional jujitsu to bring it all together.

Have a good week. I am going to.

  

Namaste

You wake up, you're older, your plans just got smaller….

Well, it’s been two weeks. I think I am ready to talk about the rest of the story. Since this is our personal record of this adventure as well a travelogue, Rae and I agreed we should include this. It won’t have much to do with India per se.

As I mentioned in the end of my last blog, on the last day of my hospital stay I met with a Rheumatologist, Dr. PD Rath. He, I think, was the best doctor with whom I interacted while in the hospital. He, first told me he was sure the immediate problem was not that the cyst was so big that it had blocked the leg. Rather he was sure it had ruptured and the fluid from the cyst had infiltrated the tissues of my leg. I quick ultrasound confirmed this diagnosis. This changed the direction of treatment and within a week the swelling was markedly reduced and progress on that front seemed to be going well. I was still taking pain killer every six hours or so but, as noted, the swelling was going down and it was getting easier to hobble around.

Then the other shoe, so to speak, dropped. In my last blontry, I admitted to not properly foreshadowing. Well, I foreshadowed the heck out of this one. Dr. Rath, actually told me blood tests revealed I had an auto immune disease. His analysis of my symptoms, and the MRIs of my back and leg and convinced him that I had spondyloarthropathy. As you know, auto immune are those in which the body’s natural defences against disease get misdirected and attack the body itself. My particular flavour attacks the spine (particular lower spine) and potentially all of the connective tissues in all of the joints, plus eyes and digestive track.

He said there was not currently a cure, but there were medications that can help with the symptoms. The problem is these drugs are hard on the liver and kidney. Unfortunately all of the medicine I had been on had been hard on my liver and kidneys, and he wanted me to be off all medications for a week before I started the new course of treatment.

OK, I thought, how hard can it be? By now I was feeling quite good: swelling was almost gone; mobility was quite good. It was frustrating to always (about 22 hours a day) have my right leg propped up at a 30-45% angle, but I couldn’t see that it would be too much of a trial. On the following Friday I would be on my new medications and on to full productivity.

Well, Tex, I sure missed on that estimate. I WAY (like completely) underestimated how much relief I was getting from the pain killers. Saturday was fine. In fact, it was the best day I had had in weeks. “Yeah baby! Just like I thought this is going to be a piece of cake.” Saturday night was bad and by Sunday, I felt like my body was under full attack. I was running a low grade fever that seemed to spike occasionally, every joint in my body (not really much of an exaggeration) hurt. My neck was so stiff and painful I couldn’t turn my head. My shoulders, particularly the surgically repaired one hurt and would experience shooting pain with use. My lower back, hips, knees, ankles, and feet all hurt. I could not roll over in bed. Getting in any given position was hard and painful; once in place moving only happened with great pain and effort. I could only stand with great difficulty and intense pain. Walking was an impossibility without a cane and even then I shuffled like a 90 year old man.

Sunday, Monday, Tuesday. Each day got worse and my physical world shrunk to essentially my bed and the bathroom, and then to just the bed and a pot. I was beginning to wonder how I would ever get back home. I might have to die, be cremated, and have my ashes sent home. I couldn’t imagine getting on a plane for 30 hours!

The darkest point was probably Monday night, although the seeds for improvement were already laid. A blessing Sunday gave me courage, peace, and hope. Monday afternoon I had the thought that I could have a couple of young men from the Branch stay the night and help me as needed. Monday night Siddharth one of the Priests from the ward stayed. Tuesday night Siddharth’s brother Deepak and Nitin Sony stayed. The presence of these young men helped me physically (such as helping stand) and emotionally. The anxiety of needing something and not being able to do or get it was removed. Still the pain was unceasing with only muscle rub to provide any release.

On Tuesday there was a real breakthrough. A friend called the doctor on my behalf and explained how bad the situation was. He convinced the doctor to call and talk with me. On the basis of that conversation he started me on a three medications: two painkillers/anti-inflammatory drugs and one to protect my GI track. He also moved my appointment from Friday to Wednesday.

Robinson went and got the prescriptions filled. I took them and within 30 minutes – relief. Beautiful, blessed relief. Wednesday, he added four more meds: one more anti-inflammatory and three to protect liver, kidneys, etc. Each day since has brought improvement and a milestone: Thursday was spending the whole day up and about. No resting. I was exhausted Thursday night but the pain was under control. Friday I went into the office. That was a mixed experience. My office was fine but the chairs in the meeting room were so uncomfortable it generated waives of pain. Saturday, brought a willingness to write about the past two weeks, and today I went to Church.

So far, every day the pain becomes more controlled, my ability to get about improves. It is not that there is no pain, but it is tolerable. I would say hope for the future is back, although what that future actually holds is unknown. I have turned the future over to God. I will do what I can step by step, day by day.  Beyond that, or where that leads, I can’t control.

I am grateful to so many people who have prayed for me; who come to visit me; who have thought about and worried about me; who have made calls and acted in my behalf. We talk a lot about our Church family. Over the past few weeks I have felt in a material way assistance and concern on both sides of the veil.

 Namaste