First and foremost, I want to publicly acknowledge my thanks to Dr. Sylvie Delanian.\u00a0 Through her extreme competence, her ability to listen, and her humanity, she is a role model and I can really say that she saved me.<\/p>\n
Born in 1957, I presented a pure seminoma in 1996, at the age of 39, which was treated and cured by local surgery followed by “intense” radiotherapy on the abdomen and then the thorax.\u00a0 In 2012, 16 years later, I suffered a sudden and rapid loss of strength in my legs.\u00a0 In retrospect, I had a tendency for 2-3 years to twist my ankle, etc.<\/p>\n
After many examinations and hypotheses spread out over long months, the diagnosis was finally made and confirmed by Dr. Delanian (for the record I’m a researcher and I found her scientific articles on the subject).\u00a0 I was convinced to take a PENTOCLO antifibrosant treatment that started in 2012 and is still in progress in 2019. This treatment allowed me to stop the process of degeneration (nerves and fibrosis) of my lumbar plexus (radiculopathy) by\u00a0 a slight improvement of the neurological situation then a stabilization … Since then, I am autonomous, I can move with feet almost normally, but with a persistent weakness in the legs especially when lifting the feet (beware of the carpets!).\u00a0 Finished tennis, etc., but I live almost normally.<\/p>\n
It must be said that this situation was not easy to accept and there followed a slight depression (this was new to me) at the end of 2012 because of anxiety about the rest (I already saw myself in a wheelchair, and with professional and family consequences).\u00a0 I met a Buddhist psychiatrist (Zen) and these circumstances caused deep soul searching and gradually led to a clarification of many things.\u00a0 I continue to practice Zen meditation since then with my wife;\u00a0I did not need antidepressants.<\/p>\n
For the record, the psychiatrist I consulted during my depressive reaction had prescribed an antidepressant.\u00a0 Which I did not take, because of my resistance to the idea, and the meditation helped me to get through it.\u00a0 I spoke to Dr. Delanian who offered me a drug from the IRS family Venlafaxine 37.5 every morning.\u00a0 This is the smallest dose to limit the energy losses of the class of anti-depressants but at a dose 10 times lower … which convinced me.\u00a0 The goal is to better recycle serotonin (by inhibiting its recapture) and so help (analog of a small crutch, according to Dr. Delanian) one of the neurotransmitters control (my legs in this case) … allowing W to avoid exhaustion.\u00a0 As for this medicine, in the end I think we should not hesitate, because it allowed me to get through a tough situation and break out of a vicious circle.<\/p>\n
Finally, I also practiced (and practice still irregularly) meditation, the idea is not a miracle drug that makes the pain disappear, but a help to give perspective by looking at the situation with a soothing effect (calm mind and body).\u00a0 There are many related practices (sophrology, mindfulness, etc.) depending on the objective (meditation paradoxically not having an objective, it is precisely the way not to focus on a desired result!).<\/p>\n
Courage, sharing, hope and compassion.<\/p>\n
Jean-Pierre<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"