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Check please!

If you are a Gen Xer like me, you probably have some fond memories from your childhood. For me, it’s thing like:

  • Seeing Darth Vader reveal the shocking truth to Luke Skywalker in The Empire Strikes Back
  • Watching the Thriller video for the first time
  • Trying over and over and over to beat the Rubik’s cube
  • Rocking a Members Only jacket or some killer Jams shorts

Now, if you are waxing nostalgic for the halcyon days of the 80s, I’m gonna need you to take time out, contact your healthcare provider, and schedule a colonoscopy.

Sneak PSA attack!

Yes, Generation X is now at the age when we should be prescreening every few years, despite the fact that we feel like we were playing on an Atari 2600 just yesterday.

I have been dodging my obligation for several years longer than I should have. I had plenty of excuses, none of them great. There was the pandemic. There was that upcoming vacation. There was that … reason. 

But I decided this would be the year that I finally got ducks in a row and my backside on the table.

And now that it’s behind me, I’m glad I did it. Spoiler alert: I got a clean bill of health. But I also got the peace of mind of knowing that, at least in that neck of the woods, there was no unpleasant surprise lurking. But had there been it could have been dealt with.

Now, admittedly, the day prior to the procedure was not the most fun day I have ever had. But the prep day was necessary, and if that is the worst part to ensure good health, it’s worth it. I embraced it by catching up on some reading and some TV. My main movie consumptions were two pieces of cinematic art that I had been meaning to get to for a while – Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping and The Nice Guys. How these two gems missed out on Oscar nominations is … well, quite obvious. Also, neither of these movies are remotely appropriate for family movie night. But they were mindless enough entertainment to pass the time.

On the day of the procedure, check-in was a breeze. Before I knew it, I was in a gown on a hospital bed with an IV in my hand. I was wheeled back into the procedure room, and after a few minutes the doctor told me I was about to take a nap. And the next thing I knew I was sitting in recovery with a dog in my lap.

No, I was not hallucinating. Scout, a therapy dog who made the rounds at the hospital, had come to visit, and I was all for it. After petting Scout for a few minutes, I was dressed and ready to go. My wife was driving me home as I took a few catnaps here and there. Having not eaten in 36 hours, I realized I was starving. As I awoke from my snoozes, I said to my wife, “I want Wendy’s.” I haven’t eaten Wendy’s in probably years, but a junior bacon cheeseburger was calling my name. And it was the best burger I’ve had in a long time.

Post-burger, I went to bed and slept off the rest of the anesthesia. That evening, I was right as rain. And I don’t have to revisit that for another five years.

If you are like me and have put off this procedure, go ahead and make the call. Do it for your family. Do it for your friends. Do it for yourself. Those memories from childhood are awesome. But you’ve got more awesome memories to make. And you gotta be here to make them.

Mike Gibbons was born and raised in Aiken, S.C. and now lives in Mount Pleasant, S.C. A graduate of the University of Alabama, you can e-mail him at scmgibbons@gmail.com.

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