I’ve got a little ginger cat called Caspian. He’s about five years old and the most gentle, kind feline you’ll ever meet.
He’s also a poorly fellow.
Back in the heady days of 2020, when we sacrificed the physical and psychological well-being of children so the laptop class could “feel” safe, Caspian nearly died.
He suddenly developed bladder stones, one of which got stuck in his urethra leaving him unable to pass urine at all. This is rapidly fatal in cats – sometimes in as little as 24 hours – because they’re delicate little creatures that can’t handle the buildup of toxins.
So, I rushed him to the emergency vet at one o’clock in the morning to get him treated. Two hours and several hundred pounds or so later, he was sorted – for a while. Now, I am not a veterinarian but, to my understanding, bladder stones in cats are a “chronic disease”. Yes, they can be cured in that you can either dissolve or surgically remove the stones but they will almost certainly re-occur without ongoing treatment, and even then they might come back anyway.
We manage Caspian’s condition by feeding him special food and keeping a calm home environment. Touch wood, he hasn’t had another complete blockage. However, he has had a few close calls where we’ve had to take him to the vet for interventions and medications.
None of this comes cheap. We’ve got insurance which covers the astronomical out-of-hours bills and some of the veterinary visits, but we pay for most of his bits and bobs out of pocket because it amounts to less than the policy excess. This works out at about a grand a year, give or take. Affordable, but not an amount to be sniffed at.
Why am I telling you this?
Well, I mentioned yesterday that the sainted NHS is finished.
As a result, I predict the above scenario will soon be how it is for human healthcare.
Big stuff covered by insurance (minus the policy excess) or the government/charities for those without insurance.
Minor and ongoing treatment paid for directly or via copays.
This will probably bankrupt some people.
Given this, I think it’s a wise move to do everything within your power to mitigate the risk of developing these chronic health conditions that require a lot of (expensive) treatment.
The good news is, many of these conditions are caused – in full or in part – by poor lifestyle choices: Not exercising, eating garbage, poor sleep, etc, etc, etc. So, it’s absolutely within your power to do something about it.
Obviously, there are no guarantees you won’t develop one of these illnesses – even if you do everything “perfectly”.
But surely it’s better to try?
Anyway, if you’d like to invest in your health now to possibly avoid paying a lot more later, you should subscribe to The Phil Tyreman Letter.
The best part is the “virtually unlimited” email support.
This allows you to ask me anything you like about anything I’m qualified to answer and receive a comprehensive response – usually in under 24 hours.
Basically, you’re getting all the support and direction you could possibly need to exceed your goals and finally get the powerful physique you’ve always wanted yet has hitherto been out of reach.
More info here:
www.philtyreman.co.uk/information
Thank you,
Phil Tyreman