“Well, it looks like Lupus” I told myself as I finished reading the charity support page, having listened to my Consultant and looked at the blood results. Six months later, here I am sharing my thoughts and inviting you to accompany me on the journey of learning to live with systemic lupus erthematosis (SLE). I have no idea where and how far it will take us, but I hope it should be interesting.
I have had heard of SLE before, but it never meant anything, as I never knew anyone with it, I thought, certainly no one in my immediate family. I’ve always led an active life, starting with a childhood growing up in Devon and Cornwall, exploring the rivers and surrounding moors of the Tamar Valley, which led onto activities in the Cubs, Scouts and Army Cadet Forces and then escaping the constrictions of school and academia by joining the Royal Navy as a boy sailor to see the world and have adventures, of which there have been many, and more I hope as that is the intention. Having spent 23 years in the Royal Navy, I moved around freely in my career, moving when the inclination and opportunity arose, always seeking to learn and achieve. The dizzy heights of promotion were not for me, as a natural introvert I never sought out the limelight, but rather wished to see the bigger picture and influence how the world rotated, preferring to lead by action and example, than to strut and and shout like some. This led me from the role as Squadron Writer with the Fleet Air Arm, to Leading Medical Assistant with the Royal Marines, to Registered Nurse in the Queen Alexandra’s Royal Naval Nursing Service and then into the National Health Service.
What did I learn through all this? Self reliance, self motivation and self belief, never to follow the crowd, and to trust yourself – which I think is going to be tested as we move forward. The past has been a good heritage of exercising this in my family, as my father has been a Royal Marine and my mother his constant companion, where they worked as a team raising my sister and I, moving across the country and enduring the conflicts active service life can bring. Historically, my known ancestors have led interesting and eventful lives, and I hope they can look on with some satisfaction that I walk in their footsteps. Onward.
Walking with the Wolf 