“I am (Elohim)the LORD; there is no other (Most High) God. I have equipped you for battle...”
Isaiah 45:5
The God Complex- (Cancerventures Book Excerpt)
…The God Complex- Do as I Say:
My personal take, based on my experiences? The higher and greater the degree of specialty, the more likely a chance for an infallible ego to exist.
Surgeons, especially, have gotten the distinction of possessing this “God complex.” They feel they hold life and death in their hands; they often believe their way should be the only way. One small detail, however: the patient. The human, complicated and unique patient.
Doctors, in my opinion, can often get tunnel vision about data and results. A doctor can, therefore, possibly place less of his/her priority on the patient’s psyche and life- apart from cancer.
And, as I have experienced numerous times, they don’t like being questioned or challenged.
But, again, this is your life, your body, your experience with cancer. It is most personal.
And it is your choice. You’re going to live with what happens in and to you, not your doctor.
So, I don’t minimize the validity of a patient’s decision, even if it goes against the tide.
No, I am not the poster girl for survivorship and treating cancer in the “right way” (not that there is a “right way” in the first place).
Rather, I’m more interested in being the heard, diagnosed person. Call me delusional, impossible, unrealistic, or even suicidal. I see it as making the choices that are right for me, prayerfully, carefully, thoughtfully. But I still get to make my choice.
And these are all reasons why I’m not best friends with my surgeon.
