Ask the hard question(s)

When your life is at stake, of course you're going to follow doctors' orders. But there are times when it absolutely behooves us to speak up.

Example: Several minutes into our first consult, I told my new oncologist that a certain medication was making me swell up like a beach ball. It hurt to walk.

Before I could ask if there might be a solution, the doctor asked me, "How much are you taking?"

"Five milligrams."

"Do you have a pill-cutter at home?"

"Yes."

"Cut it in half." Bingo.

Lesson learned: No one ever got better by suffering in silence.