The Gom Jabbar: Yes, I know that everybody... - My MSAA Community

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The Gom Jabbar

RoyceNewton profile image
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Yes, I know that everybody here is a huge sci-fi fan and that you have read Dune several times. Of course having read it "YOU full well know where I am going here. Oh "YOU" have not read it, seriously. I guess not everybody in the world read as much sci-fi as I did as a teenager so I will attempt to fill "YOU" in. The Gom Jabber is a perception box used to test men, to see if they were the one or an animal. He would stick his hand into the box and the Sister Mother Superior would tell him that his hand is burning and that if he broke and pulled his hand out of the box that she would kill him. She used suggestions that his hand was burning but he had to hold it there or die.

Our hero imagined his hand burning, shrivelling to a stump, but he held it inside the box, he lived. He pulled his hand out of the box expecting to a shrivelled burnt stump. He would be scarred for life a deformed cripple. Back in my day and maybe not so long ago that was our fate. We did not have Disease Modifying Therapies (DMT) we were destined for very unfashionable wheel chairs. There was no treatment. Times have changed and like our hero so have our perceptions. His hand was unscarred it was all his imagination his perception. We have many different DMT now, we do not have to be smiling in a wheelchair or other assistive device. Now we can walk around with silly smiles on our faces. Our perception has changed. DMT will not cure us and sometimes the one we choose does not agree with us, but there is something that can slow down the progression of our condition. I can now call my ms, a condition or any of the other names I use. I do not have to refer to it as a crippling life sentence. It is still a life sentence, there is no cure, but devastating and crippling I think not. Most of us will be relapsing remitting, those who pass to secondary progressive I think have had a little time to come to terms with this illness. Primary Progressive I do not have and do not know many Primary Progressive people so I will not speak of that.

So, it all boils down to your perception, your mental strength. Regard it as the be all end all and it will be exactly that. Regard it as an inconvenience and adapt to its riggers and my sisters and brothers that is what it will be. I am most certainly not saying that it is simple and easy, it is rather annoying frustration and sometimes difficult, but with the right outlook, attitude “YOU” will live a long and contented life. Not carefree there are obstacles along this path, but everyone of them “YOU” will get around.

Royce

I perceive that today is good and so will tomorrow be

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RoyceNewton profile image
RoyceNewton
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Kenu profile image
Kenu

Great Post Royce 👍🐾🐾Ken

carolek572 profile image
carolek572CommunityAmbassador

I choose to be silly, with a smile on my face, and live, adapt, and thrive, despite my PPms. RR or PP or any other label, it's still 'ms' to me! Good post, Royce. Even if I am not a sci-fi enthusiast (not my genre), I still got what you were referring to. Thank you. :-D

hairbrain4 profile image
hairbrain4

My prayer for everyone with MS is a positive attitude. It really is the best way to function with MS. I like your sci-fi approach. Come to think about it, if the people in most sci-fi stories didn't have a good attitude the monster got them!

RoyceNewton profile image
RoyceNewton

well that is one way of looking at it

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