Everything else could wait...or could it?

[Jose Josphat]

There should be a point of balance. The author seemed not to understand the fact that - she could find more fulfillment in not only doing what she loved (being a caregiver) but also doing that in good health by putting more emphasis on self-care. To my opinion, this could be the balance needed in everyone's life.

[Sarah Nichols 7]

Some people are career driven. Some people are family oriented. Some people are both. When you are passionate about a calling in your life, it can blind you to everything else that matters to you. It’s true that “everything else could wait”, but how long will they wait? Will they still be there when you look up?

[hullahope]

According to me, my loved ones and me are more important compared to my job. My job helps me to earn money for my loved ones and if I don't take care about them, then what's the use of the job? Also, if I don't take care of myself, I will fall sick which will cause me to lose my job which will then bring grief upon my loved ones. So, it's me and my loved ones over my job.

[Satwik Mohanty]

Doing what you love to do is important and so is taking care of you and your family. If you neglect any one of these, the other will be affected. So, it is necessary to find a balance between both.

[Eddy E]

The author did not consider what she did to be a job, it was more a lifestyle, something she loved. We can't really say if she paid more attention to herself she may not have gotten cancer, no one really knows until they find out. So yes maybe a little more self care could have created awareness. Balance is key

[RHD]

Caring for others and selfcare are both quite important. One just needs to draw a line. One needs to know how much time and effort is requisite for career development as well as for loved ones and oneself. The moment we give too one and ignore the other, at the end of the day, we are the ones who lose.

[Antara Sengupta]

Everyone eventually dies, whether by illness, old age or by other means. But regretting what could have been or what could have been done, make it even more, harder to move on. Life is a short journey, it ends but we only experience what's in the middle because what comes after death no one knows. We should live how much ever time we are given, to the fullest. In the book, if she has taken more concern for her own self and her health and taken work with less compulsion, she might not have gotten cancer. But life is unpredictable, we never know what will come ahead of us.

[Chukwuebuka Ifedigbo]

This is a tricky question. I believe life sometimes happens to us at the least expected times. Regardless of what she might have done, the sickness was bound to happen. Only that if she had care for herself more, the situation may be better.

[Amy Luman]

I am not sure that everything else CAN wait. Her health certainly could not wait, as we see, family can’t wait, it’s always changing. She seemed to be caring for everyone (her patients) and everything else besides herself.

[Ivan Nechaiev]

I really think overworking is not a solution, because it just drives you insane in the short term, and makes your life very unhealthy in the long run. On the other hand, is your family and your relations with them. Numerous studies have proved that the most important thing that makes people happy is their relationships with their loved ones. I think the family is more important than your job.

[F N Chamomile]

I think it can be pretty tricky to decide our priority in life. We may devote ourselves to our job and career, but is it worth to sacrifice the other aspects of our life? The fact that she questions her own statement shows that she indeed has this awareness that she should care about herself and her family. We can't be certain that it would lead to a significant different outcome, but there may be some changes.

[Ivvie Ivanova]

I'm not a caregiver by profession but I do take care of my grandmother who has a weak heart. I think people who take care of others should have a strong personal sense to take above basic care of themselves since others depend on them.

Now, even you care for yourself as much a possible, cancer can still happen to you. But still, caregivers need to be good to themselves too because there are countless illnesses that arise from poor self-care, both physical and mental.

[Muskan Upadhyaya]

This question can lead to endless opinions because everyone have their different priorities for someone their family is their priority and on the other hand for someone else their career is their priority. For the author, she finds happiness while treating her patients and everything else can wait and that's completely fine as thats what her priority is all about.

[Unosthetic]

It is important to balance those two situation; doing the job wholeheartedly, and caring for theirselves and loved ones. Managing both situation with the same amount of attention may help the author to keep herself from having a cancer. But if I am in the same situation, I may also not be able to apply my suggestion, because it is indeed a hard situation.

[VictoriousReader]

I understand the author's desire to take care of her patients, but I still think she should have taken care of herself first. As a healthcare provider you have to be healthy to be able to take care of the health of others.