Dr. William McGinnis, M.D.Medical Director--Great River Cancer Care Center, West Burlington, IA
When we first started treatment, Diane and I met with a wonderful man, Dr. Bill McGinnis, who as it turns out was also the radiation oncologist for Coach Don Patterson at the University of Iowa. Dr. McGinnis is very patient, thorough, candid, and has a casual manner that puts people at ease. Yet, he sugar coats nothing which we both appreciated as in spite of the fact that this has not been fun, there have been no surprises.
I generally speak to a half dozen or so college classes each semester on the topic of individual motivation and the choices/consequences we experience in life. I did my first such presentation Friday and while in the past, I have done 3 in a day, I'm bright enough to finally realize I need to cut back so I'm doing one a week for the next three weeks. I enjoy doing this as it gets me out and as I've discovered over the years, sometimes what I say actually gets students to think about how they are living their lives.
I mention Dr. McGinnis because his advice to all cancer patients is brief and to the point. He has two rules of life:
1. If you get tired, rest.
2. If it hurts, don't do it.
This seems very simplistic but as I recover, the hardest part has been to realize I need to slow down. Last week when talking about how I felt a little bit tired, my tv producer, Mark Dial, said, "Gee, Gord, I thought you were smart. Don't you know your immune system is shot and your recovery will be very slow." I came home and shared Mark's profound insights with Diane who was not amused. She looked at me and said, "I tell you that every day." Of course she's right but sometimes we listen better when advice comes from a third party.
The point of all this is that I am learning to pace myself, and I realized at the conclusion of this first classroom outing that I was finished for the day. Kudos to Bill McGinnis who does so much for so many people including me!
