The old psychiatry was terrifying
Tamara is a purebred Georgian. During the Soviet era, the father served in the army, was assigned to Lithuania, where he received an education in physics and began teaching. Eventually, the family decided to settle in Maria’s land.
“I was very small when they brought me. I was born in Georgia, but the family cannot live separately, my father took me and my mother,” Tamara told the “Healthy Time” program of “Zinių radio”.
in 1993 she finished school, entered Vilnius University and had no further thoughts of returning to Sakartvelas. True, he spent the summers in his parents’ hometown and learned the Georgian language.
Tamara knew from early childhood that she would be a doctor. She was inspired by the example of her grandmother, who worked as a radiologist, with whom the girl spent a lot of time.
“I thought I would be a plastic surgeon. It’s funny now, but then it seemed serious, interesting,” said Tamara.
The opinion suddenly changed when it came to choosing a direction of residency. Spiritual and philosophical quests led to the specialty of psychiatry.
The woman recalled that the winds of change blew at the end of the last century. The understanding of psychiatry was changed by the opening of doors to the West, frequent trips abroad.
“Psychiatry was terrifying. As students, we used to come and have no handle, can’t leave. There was a desire that people no longer feel that way,” said Tamara.
She said that she realized that it is necessary to bring psychiatric care closer to the patient’s home, instead of locking him up in a large hospital far from his relatives.
Tamara said that following the example of the Netherlands, 5 Crisis Intervention Centers were established in Lithuania, which made it possible to quickly respond to emotional crises, to separate the flow of patients who experienced primary psychosis from chronic patients. This used to be a traumatic experience for new patients.
He waved his hand at the signs of the disease
2020 was a year of transformation for Tamara. And not just because of the COVID-19 pandemic. The woman was forced to close her private medical clinic and heard the diagnosis of a serious illness.
Tamara found out that she has stomach cancer, the disease was advanced. How did the doctor miss the signs of oncology?
“A cobbler without shoes,” the woman admitted and explained that she was focused on work concerns. She was under a lot of stress and thought her stomach aches were a result of her emotional well-being.
“There was a lot of weakness, constant headaches, tension and stress. You sleep and eat healthy, but how is it that you still don’t have the energy?
When I started to suffocate while moving, I became somewhat gray, I began to understand”, Tamara explained the decision to finally go to the doctors.
“I don’t want to talk about it on a minor or tragic note. No matter how it sounds, from today’s point of view, I understand that it was the best experience of my life.
You know, when they got the diagnosis, the inner relief came. Finally, my internal state and how I felt about what was happening externally matched the diagnosis. It became clear why it is so difficult for me.
People react very differently to financial and health crises. It’s probably normal to be scared and panicked, I think that’s probably how they should react. But maybe because I was so tired, my reaction was calm,” Tamara said.
Overcame the side effects of the treatment
The woman said that the disease helped her remember what she really likes in life. The first thought was that he had to survive for the sake of his children, who were 6 and 8 years old at the time.
“Later I realized that wasn’t the main reason. The main reason is to discover yourself. Children, husband, parents, and friends will discover you only after you have yourself,” said the psychiatrist.
Tamara reflected that she experienced a lot of fear and anxiety, emotions that are typical of people who are given difficult diagnoses later in life.
She testified that fear disappeared and joy, curiosity to discover the world came. Having previously believed only in evidence-based medicine, the woman turned to traditional Chinese medicine and Ayurveda.
Tamara said that Qigong is an ancient Chinese energy management system.
“It allows a person, using physical exercises, breathing and meditative practices, to maintain health or restore the body, to help heal it,” said the woman.
She admitted that she was looking for ways to increase her chances of survival. Each stage of treatment helped curb the disease, but also had side effects that become a serious challenge for oncology patients.
“You find that acupuncture and Qigong practices, if done when the lesion is recent, after a cycle of chemotherapy, reverse the side effects,” assured Tamara.
According to her, people suffering from an oncological disease often turn to her for advice, and the starting point is managing the side effects of treatment, recovery after surgical treatment.
Foreign doctors had nothing to offer
Tamara praised Lithuanian medicine. She sent documents to oncology centers in the United States and the United Kingdom, but received answers that they had nothing to offer – the woman in Lithuania receives the most modern treatment.
“I will never forget the wonderful team of doctors and surgeons of Kaunas clinics. They told me: “Tamara, you have to go into surgery like you’re preparing for a triathlon, you have to be strong.”
I remember arriving at the hospital in the best physical shape I’ve ever been in my life,” the woman laughed.
She emphasized the power of thoughts. If you get it into your head that cancer is a deadly disease, nothing good will happen. Tamara went to every chemotherapy treatment dressed up because she felt that each visit increased her chances of survival.
“This provision is a game-changer,” assured Tamara.
2024-08-25 19:07:08