Dr Bindumenon

When I turned 50, I reached a physical and hormonal milestone — menopause.   As far I was concerned, it was a mild physical transformation, but what jolted me was the profound….. shift in my mental and emotional space.   While I had gracefully attained my physical half-century, away from all the   risk factors that often accompany age, I realized that my mental maturity hadn’t reached its age As I embraced my physical maturity, my mind began its first baby steps. Life taught me and I had to rewrite my thoughts, perceptions, and understanding of the people in this world.   I learned Trust is fluid . Long-standing bonds that I felt would never shake crumbled in a fraction of a second. I understood that it is better to let go to embrace self-peace. Some relationships teach us life lessons   Instincts are power banks . One should listen to the inner voice even when the outer world appears contradictory. I started trusting my inner voice more now.   Set boundari...

Last night, while I was rushing home from work, I overheard a young couple arguing, their voices heavy with emotion. The woman's voice trembling was speaking through her tears “I spent my whole life sacrificing. I did not enjoy anything in my life. I have always kept your happiness as a priority, and now look at what you have done”.   “My love was unconditional, but yours was not.”  The whole staircase resonated with her words “My unconditional love” I climbed the stairs, feeling miserable for the woman who loved him so deeply.  It made me wonder—what does unconditional love truly mean?  I suppose the definition is equal to selfless love, a never-ending stream of sacrifices but without any expectation.  Is love truly unconditional if it makes someone feel depleted, unseen, and unappreciated?  Perhaps unconditional love is more nuanced. It isn’t just about giving endlessly at the cost of one’s happiness. It also means loving with a sense of completeness...

The Scripted Life  It was a crowded place   Almost everyone seemed to be talking, coughing, sneezing or in pain. I too let out a sneeze. My mother immediately wiped my face and nose and took me nearer. I dug my face into her lap.   Suddenly there was a hush and I saw people getting up. I too got up on my feet and sneezed again.   A tall man with a long white coat and a black pipe around his neck looked down while passing by and kept his hand on my head. I touched his white coat.   Soft, pure, and magical.   I asked my mother “ Who is he?” She said he is a big Doctor. He will stop you from sneezing   As a little girl, I could imagine the power in his hands .  “The Power of Healing”   I looked at the queue in front and behind me. It seemed endless on either side. My mother asked, “ Are you hungry”. I nodded. She fished out a Parle G biscuit, and I devoured it with a few sneezes in between. I peeped into the doctor’s room as the door was complet...

In my years of practising medicine, certain incidents linger in my mind.  Once, as I was rushing out of the emergency room, a family bound to me by their neurological diseases quickly approached me. They were in grief. Their son, a careful driver who followed every traffic rule, was on the operating table after a drunk driver ran into him. He was sick, and they were struggling to deal with how unfair it all seemed. They asked me, “Doctor, how could this happen to him? He did everything right.”  Their words resonated with an experience I had years ago when my daughter was in school. It was her school’s annual function, and she had a major role. The school had prohibited cameras at the event. I respected the rule and left mine at home. But when the event began, I was surprised to see most parents go very near the stage, cameras in hand, recording every moment of their children’s performances.  My daughter was amazing, and while I captured every moment in my heart, I have no...

Pregnancy is a very beautiful feeling.  When I came to know about my pregnancy, it was a heavenly feeling.  I felt her within me from the first day and In fact, I can still feel her emotions even if she is miles away. While I carried the weight of two lives, yet my needs often got overlooked. My hunger cramps and leg cramps used to compete with each other.  They were very frequently entertained by a musical note by the duty pager.  I never ate the raw mango, untimely ice creams, masala chips and all the food they usually show in the movies the pampered pregnant woman has!  While I was struggling to balance the pregnancy and workload in the solitary journey,  I turned into a stronger and more resilient woman.   And I thank you my lovely beta for being there and moulding me.  Your presence from the womb till now reminds me that even in the toughest times, I am never really alone…….

It was 10 minutes past midnight. The flight was unprecedentedly delayed by 2 hours. “ A technical hitch “ was what was told to us. We were relieved that the flight had landed smoothly without any technical issues. I was on my way to visit my daughter.  As I retrieved my luggage from the conveyor belt, troubled thoughts swirled in my mind. It’s getting late. Should I leave now, or should I stay at a nearby hotel for the night before continuing my journey? Lost in thought, I kept walking until I reached the exit. As I was about to leave, someone grabbed my suitcase and said, "Namaste, Madam. You're late to visit your daughter this time." His cheerful face was like a God-given gift.   I replied, "Yes, I have been busy," then we started. I relaxed and leaned back, ready to sleep. The journey of a woman's life is both challenging and beautiful.  Understanding the challenges that women face in their everyday lives is something that only another woman can truly un...

The grey in our decisions   This was in the summer of last year. I had a 55-year-old male patient admitted with a severe stroke. He was a government job holder with lots of stress and had hypertension. He was initially intubated and was now off that tube. He still needed two tubes: one to feed him and another to drain out his urine.  For the last seven days, we all had struggled and brought him to this present position, which was excellent by medical grading. His wife and daughter were the only family members present at his bedside.  However, despite the medical progress, in reality, the patient and his family were still struggling. The neurology team recommended rehabilitation care but the family was unable to decide. We spent a couple of days wavering on decisions between discharge or continuing hospital management The daughter asked me, "Is this the right decision to go home?  "I pondered   "There is no single right decision; each of us is right from ou...