Sorry for the “downer” of a post this morning but my thoughts, probably similar to many of you, have been on the recent news about the Oceangate’s submarine, Titan, disappearing during its voyage to see the sunken Titanic wreakage off the coast of Newfoundland. For several days after communication was lost with the sub, it was believed that the 5 people aboard were stuck on the ocean floor somewhere, in a cramped space, running out of oxygen, in the dark and cold. Then, after debris was located, it was believed that an implosion occurred due to the high pressure on the hull and the deaths of the people were instantaneous, without any pain/suffering. Although death was the final outcome in both scenarios, for the family members, knowing that their loved ones were not suffering for days was probably somewhat of a comfort.
There is an expression often used that “we are all dying”, meaning that death awaits all of us at some point. Obviously, for younger/healthier people, this date is far in the future but for older people, especially those with medical issues, the “due date” may be closer than what we would like.
As a medical doctor, I have unfortunately seen my share of people dying and how life “ends” can vary from a sudden event incurring very little pain/suffering to unfortunately, a longer, more drawn out process that does include lots of pain and suffering. This pain and suffering extends to the loved ones as well.
At times, our behaviors fall under the mantra of “Live every day as if it was your last.” If we all knew that this was our last day alive, would we care one bit about going to work? Would we care about what we eat or drink? However, knowing that more life is ahead of us and we would like those days to be filled with good health and happiness, we do strive to do the “healthy” behaviors.
The point: Following a healthier lifestyle will lower the chances of experiencing lots of pain and suffering as we all make our way to “the end”. Although it is tempting to fall into the “we are all dying at some point anyway” mindset, we can alter the course in a positive way.
Okay, I promise a much more upbeat entry tomorrow!
Hear is Eric Clapton’s hit, “Tears In Heaven”.
