K. R. Sethuraman
37 Crying for help Hercules and the Waggoner: A wagoner drove a loaded wagon when its wheels
sank into the muddy road. His horses could not pull it out of the mire. He wrung
his hands helplessly and wailed aloud requesting Hercules to help him. After a
while, Hercules himself appeared and said, "Put your shoulder to the wheel and goad your horses. Then you may seek help. If you will not lift a little finger to help
yourself, you can't expect God or anyone else to come to your rescue."
Mohan, a 35-year old businessman, developed multiple sclerosis - a chronic disease
of the nervous system with an unpredictable course of recoveries and relapses. On realising the nature of the disease, he was devastated. His initial attack was mild and
resulted only in a partial paralysis of the legs from which he could have made quick recovery. The physician told him, "Mohan, try hard and you will be back on your feet in
four weeks.� The physiotherapist tried to motivate him to perform exercises. But he pleaded helplessness and made no real effort to move his legs.
When Mohan asked his physician, "Doctor, when would I recover and go home?",
he replied in an exasperated tone, "My dear young man! I have to ask you that question.
When would you try to recover and go home? Simply lying down pleading to be powerless won't get you anywhere. When you decide to take charge of your recovery, we probably can help you, but not until then." Comments The ability to recover from a setback and bounce back to full life varies from person 110
