the plastics guy

Dr. Kripke (formerly known as Dr. K the breast surgeon, I figure I can out him now that I'm not a current patient) used to refer to Dr. S as 'the plastics guy'. I always saw it as funny since I can't think of anything that Dr. S did that involved plastics. (Yes, I know the 'Plastikos' connection.) Dr. Kripke also mentioned many times that once the surgery was done I would be in the hands of Dr. S since he was the last to leave the room. I was so sad to lose Dr. Kripke and was so glad that he checked up on me when he didn't have to.

It's no secret that I have great respect for both surgeons. Dr. Kripke was incredibly compassionate and I will be forever grateful for how he treated me. How can I forget the man who gently told me that I had cancer? I'll always remember him for that.

I see Dr. S as my knight in shining armor. Dr. K took the cancer out but Dr. S helped keep me relatively sane post surgery and beyond (hmm, is that a bit redundant?). As I've stated before, I got terrible care at Paoli Hospital. In my mind Dr. S was the only one who was concerned with my recovery and I always breathed easier when he walked in the room.

This afternoon I had lunch with M, my online friend and fellow patient of Dr. S. We had a fantastic time chatting about our number one guy. We also talked about friends and family, the other women from the cancer message board, our disease, our jobs and co-workers and life in general. Altho this was our first meeting, there wasn't a single uncomfortable silence. We both blabbed endlessly and enjoyed telling our stories. We sat there for three and a half hours and if it weren't for our families waiting at home I'm sure we could have talked for another three. It was nice.

Dr. S. was nervous when he heard that M and I knew each other. I think he was paranoid about what we were saying. She and I both had complications and certainly weren't easy cases so I can see how he'd think we would blame him. Little does he know how highly we think of him and how important he has been in our lives. He has been responsible for putting our broken bodies together and for helping us to feel comfortable in our skin. That is not an easy task.

Big Hugs to My Hero - Dr. S, the boy genius.