Maureen Balke

Tonight's show, where Riley's Marine Corp. Dad denied that he had gout, ignored it, wouldn't go to a doctor, then ended up with emergency surgery due to macho denial of heart/breathing/pain issues, really hit hard. My sister's husband, Marine Corp. retired, denied for several years that there was anything wrong, though he had leg issues (numbness, pain) where before he had been a pretty serious jogger. He had also taken up drinking LOTS of alcohol. He refused to go to a doctor, asserting that there was nothing wrong, and that he just had what his mother had--gout, or rheumatoid arthritis. But he refused to go to a doctor. Then my sister found him, sprawled on the floor, unable to move, and called 911. They took him to the ER and found gangrene and sepsis. They had to surgically remove one leg above the knee, and the other just below, and told him "You could still die." His pride and inability to admit to real physical pain that he ignored for several years was to blame. Riley understandably had difficulty in agreeing to accept "disability" pay. His dad had difficulty admitting that he could maybe actually have a physical issue that needed addressing--thereby admitting a form of weakness. These are real issues, and our men (and women) in uniform need to know that we are on their side, we support them, and they can admit to weakness or being wounded--so that we can help them.