Good point. I guess I was comparing it to the low bar of nihilism, which, I feel is a more parasitic meme than religion.
Zyryab
Karma: −5
The good news is that you’re young so you have a lot of time to improve yourself. This young woman may be the impetus for your newfound motivation, but you should first try to find an internal reason for self improvement in the off chance that things don’t work out.
This is what I would do. Pick something that gives you meaning and work to get better at it a little bit every day. I’m a practical person, so if this thing is something people want (i e., Will pay you good money to do) even better. It will be hard. You will want to quit, but the better you get at it, the more you’ll like it.
At the same time, work to improve your moral philosophy. Anything but nihilism, which is a dead send. For me, the Star Trek philosophy on life carried me a long way in my youth, but it wasn’t until I hit real hardship that I found it seriously lacking. It was a good place to start for me. You may want to skip the derivative philosophies and go directly to one that has passed the Darwin test and ensured the survival of humans for thousands of years (Buddhism, Judaism or Christianity).
I recommend you show this to a doctor who treats patients with type I diabetes and see if it passes the intellectual Turing test. I don’t believe the doctor is being represented accurately here.
Alternative view: Your friend has a deadly disease that requires regular doctor visits and prescriptions. It sucks. It’s not fair, but it requires him to take some level of responsibility for his own care. He seems to have failed to do so by not keeping his appointments and letting his prescriptions run out. His doctor needs to see him and check his levels (presumably his A1c) to manage his diabetes. Your friend has unnecessarily escalated the situation by threatening to use the social media mob against the doctor.
Your friend is not evil. He’s just young. And like all young patients with a deadly chronic disease, is having a hard time dealing with his mortality. Your friend should keep his appointment with his doctor, but at the same time find a doctor who will be better suited to his schedule and needs.
The doctor is not evil. He just needs to have a clear view of the patient before he goes around prescribing deadly medicine (insulin can kill) to a patient who has shown an inability to manage his disease (keeping appointments, not running out of life-saving medicine).
Regarding the price of medicine in Canada: I believe the fixed low prices in Canada are being subsidized by your friend and all Americans.
Regarding the 3-month figure from the story, from https://annals.org/aim/fullarticle/2653838/treatment-type-1-diabetes-synopsis-2017-american-diabetes-association-standards
“Hemoglobin A1c reflects average glycemia over approximately 3 months and has strong predictive value for diabetes complications (14, 15). Measurement every 3 months in patients with type 1 diabetes determines whether glycemic targets have been reached and maintained. It may also confirm the accuracy of the patient’s meter (or their reported CGM or SMBG results) and adequacy of the testing schedule.”