Simile strangulation

Watch carefully as I take an already overstretched simile and strangle it to within an inch of its life.

Right so I have come to think of my periods of illness as being somewhat like the NASA Apollo missions to the moon.

What do you mean you don't get it? I think it's a perfectly sensible comparison to make.

Oh all right then here's my thinking.

My first instance of being taken in to hospital was a real step into the unknown; alien territory if you like. This is akin to the preparatory missions to the moon.

The Bone Marrow Transplant itself therefore becomes the big show itself - the Apollo 11 landings, not least of all because I probably got a similar dose of radiation to those chaps.

Now these were times where I had absolutely everyone's attention. It was such a shock to everyone that a perfectly fit 22 year old should be in such a situation so I was surrounded by people all the time. My best friend calls it the biggest attention seeking trick I ever played. Strange as may sound to say but there's an excitement to it all as well - anything where your life might well be on the line has this I think.

Over time my relapses and battles with opportunistic infections become so commonplace that I even stop telling people about them, because they're all just the same situation repeated. This I think of as the next Apollo mission where people cared less because it had been done before. Now I don't actually think anybody cared less - I certainly gave them no opportunity to do so - but the fact is we all became a little complacent about just how much danger I was in each time I ended up in hospital. It's a matter of practicality you see. I was in and out of hospital so much that nobody could afford to get stressed out by my being in there each and every time - it would just take too much energy

And so to Apollo 13 where something goes very wrong indeed.
This time I end up in hospital in Liverpool and it's serious. Just as with said lunar vehicle it's a problem with the breathing apparatus and we need to find a way of getting the best out of the equipment we have at hand, so we can get me home safely.
This brings a response from everyone that is akin to how it was when I was first diagnosed. Everyone is scared that I might not actually survive this and it pushes them into overdrive and I get everyone coming to see me. Another phenomenal bit of attention seeking I'll grant you.

OK so it's a pretty contrived comparison but you try some of the drugs I've had to take over the years and see what your mind comes up with. I'm very much hoping for the same sort of conclusion as Apollo 13 had by the way, including a wee dip in the ocean. It's been far, far too long since I've had the chance to do that.