Cancer tip 68 (Recovery) Stash some money away to cover
federal income tax. This is one of those “Do as I say. Not as I do.” Tips. If
your employer has a disability policy and you go out on short or long term
disability, be advised some insurers DO NOT withhold income tax. I dropped the
ball here and it cost me a bit of cash just as I was coming out of my cancer
haze and returning to work. Even though most disability insurance is woefully
inadequate to cover lost wages, the tax bill can be shockingly high.
Cancer tip 69 (recovery). Get in shape if you can. Referring
to tip 66, Set up a plan to get yourself back in good enough shape to do the
things you want to do. This can be ridiculously hard, but it’s gotta be
done. Want to go fishing and need
to walk two miles to get you your fishing hole? Slowly work up to it. Important
note – make sure platelets are sustained at 50,000 before you do anything too
crazy. Although normal platelets are 150,000, I think we all threw normal out
the window a while ago. Safe – for exercise – is 50,000. That’s what Lance
Armstrong says – he’d never lie.
Cancer Tip 70 (recovery) Forgive yourself for the emotional
outbursts you’re gonna have at work. This goes for caregivers too. When you go
through this and return to work, you’re gonna realize that a lot of what you’re
doing is pretty stupid.
I was on a conference call when I first got back and it went on for
about 30 minutes too long as everyone tried to jockey for phone call supremacy.
The big muckety-mucks asked if there were any question. I said, “Since it’s
painfully obvious we’re done, can I hang up?” Another time a subordinate gave
me a ration of shit and I resigned, luckily the secretary of labor talked me
out of it. Another time I just broke down and cried.
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