Jason Yong

  • Don’t wait.

    Note: this post may evolve over time as I add more details. I also don’t know what the point of this post is. =\

    The day is Monday, August 11, 2025. One month since my last day at Benevity.

    I booked an appointment to see my family doctor, someone that I haven’t seen in many years. I knew that I was burnt out from work but I wasn’t sure if there were any negative impacts on my health so I figured a random checkup was in order.

    Little did I know that this simple checkup would change the course of my life so drastically.

    My doctor did the usual things, placed her stethoscope on my chest, listened to my heart and lungs, and then told me that she heard a loud heart murmur.

    In mid-September, I was scheduled for an echocardiogram.

    By the end of October, I went through two transthoracic echocardiograms (TTE) and a transesophageal echocardiogram (TEE).

    By the end of November, I had my consult appointment with Dr. Burns at St. Michael’s hospital.

    The diagnosis: severe myxomatous mitral valve prolapse with severe regurgitation

    In simpler terms: one of the valves in my heart didn’t close properly and it resulted in blood flowing backwards into the left atrium (blood is only supposed to flow one way).

    In early January, I got a call from the hospital and they’ve now booked my minimally invasive robotic surgery at St. Michael’s for Thursday, January 22, 2026.

    January 22, 2026

    To be continued in part 2… eventually.

    Struggles

    “…while pain is universal, it is also utterly private. We cannot know whether our pain is like anybody else’s pain until we talk about it.” ― Viet Thanh Nguyen, The Sympathizer

    (A quote that I saw on Instagram? at some point and really liked.)

    In no particular order and not exhaustive by any means.

    • Breathing with and without tubes in you
    • Getting up from bed
    • Turning to the side
    • Peeing
    • Walking with a catheter
    • Moving in any way with tubes in you
    • Pain
    • The first bowel movement
    • Sleeping
    • Coughing
    • Sneezing
    • Sitting up
    • Standing
    • Not being able to sleep while being in so much pain and discomfort
    • Being tired and lacking energy

    Negative/Intrusive Thoughts

    • I am a shell of my former self
    • I am so useless
    • I am in so much pain and discomfort
    • Is this all that life is?
    • What is my purpose in life?

    Conclusion

    There are moments in life where there is a before and an after.

    The loss of loved ones. The house fire. Quitting my toxic job. And now this surgery.

    There will undoubtedly be more before and after moments that follow after this but, for now, this is the pivotal moment of what my life was and what my life could be.

    It has taught me and also forced me to realize so much.

    Appreciation for the most basic, simple things in life.

    • Being able to breathe
    • Being able to get up out of bed
    • Being able to pee and poop
    • Just the act of being and living is a lot of work

    Gratitude for all the people in my life.

    • Gratitude for the amazing people that work at St. Michael’s hospital
    • Gratitude for my parents for dropping me off, picking me up, and providing all the support and help that I need even though I try my darnedest to not need their help
    • Gratitude for my friends. The ones that messaged before, during, or after surgery, the ones that offered to visit, the ones that I had an opportunity to spend time with before surgery, the ones that make this journey of life worth living
    • Gratitude for my 4ish month old job (at the time) and my coworkers and their support throughout this entire process

    The rest of my story is yet to be written but I think I can definitively say that the after looks bright for once. ♥️

    One last thing to share is an excerpt from my speech at our volleyball club’s year-end event:

    Don’t wait.
    Don’t wait to go get that checkup.
    Don’t wait to quit that toxic job.
    Don’t wait to do that thing that you’ve been wanting to do because you’ve been waiting for the right time.
    And most importantly, don’t wait to tell the people that you care about that you care about them.
    Because, in the end, what really matters is the now. And the people you choose to spend it with.
    The people who show up to a Boston Pizza on a cold Saturday evening in December.
    The people that help you out – whether you ask for it or not.
    The people that make you laugh uncontrollably.
    The people that you get food with after volleyball.
    The people that you trust.
    The people who listen.
    The people that are just there.
    These are the people that matter.

  • Do More Good

    I am not posting this because I want to brag about something I did today. I am posting this because I truly believe we need to do more good in this world, regardless of how late it might make us or what’s going on in our lives.

    This morning, as I was driving to the GO station, I noticed an elderly man hunched over at a TTC bus stop. As I got closer, I kept looking at him to see if he was moving because he seemed frozen or stuck. He was probably in his 70’s or older, had a cane, and looked kind of pale.

    I pulled over, got out of my car, walked over to him, and asked him if everything was okay. He told me that he was having trouble sitting down on the bench and that he was stuck. A wheelchair was outside the bus shelter and I asked him if it was his. He said yes and I asked him if he wanted to sit on that instead. He informed me that the wheel on his wheelchair was broken or messed up.

    I looked at the tire and part of the tire was off the hub/rim/whatever it’s called. I fixed it and I asked him if he now wanted to sit back down on the wheelchair. He did and I helped him from his half seated position into his wheelchair.

    A TTC bus pulled up shortly thereafter and I asked him if he needed to get on it. He replied no and assured me that he was waiting for a ride. He thanked me and I confirmed one last time that everything was okay now.

    We don’t need to know that the things that we do, like holding the door for someone, helping someone with something, or even saying hello, make a difference in someone’s life. We don’t and we can’t ever know the result of all of our actions. However, knowing that there’s people out there that can and will help is what makes all the difference in the world.

  • Appreciating your presence is different from recognizing your existence

    For them to see you shine, you must stay far away, for you
    are just like the sun; when you’re too close, your light makes them blind. And when you’re too far, they see you. So let them seek you. They’re getting your light regardless, but appreciating your presence is different from recognizing your existence. If they don’t appreciate your presence, they may never even recognize your absence.

    – Najwa Zebian

  • Good hearts

    Here’s the thing about people with good hearts. They give you excuses when you don’t explain yourself. They accept apologies you don’t give. They see the best in you when you don’t need them to. At your worst, they lift you up, even if it means putting their priorities aside. The word “busy” does not exist in their dictionary. They make time, even when you don’t. And you wonder why they’re the most sensitive people. You wonder why they’re the most caring people. You wonder why they are willing to give so much of themselves with no expectation in return. You wonder why their existence is not so essential to your well-being. It’s because they don’t make you work hard for the attention they give you. They accept the love they think they’ve earned and you accepted the love you think you’re entitled to. Let me tell you something. Fear the day when a good heart gives up on you. Our skies don’t become grey out of no where. Our sunshine does not allow the darkness to take over for no reason. A heart does not turn cold unless it’s been treated with coldness for a while.

    – Najwa Zebian

  • My Trigger Point Warranty Experience

    Product: Trigger Point – Grid X Foam Roller
    Problem: Crack in plastic
    Resolution time: 9 business days; January 3, 2017 – January 16, 2017

    January 3, 2017 – Crack in plastic

    I noticed that my Grid X Foam Roller had a crack in the inner plastic tube since it made a weird sound whenever I would use it. Off I went to their website to see what their warranty procedure was. I first went onto the Grid X’s product page that lists their Customer Service e-mail as: customerservice@tptherapy.com but that e-mail bounces whenever you send that address an e-mail.

    One Year Limited Guarantee: TriggerPoint warrants that all of the products we manufacture will be free of defects for up to one year from the original date of purchase. This does not include or cover damage caused by transit, accident, normal wear and tear or lost merchandise. Product must be purchased through TriggerPoint, directly, or from an authorized reseller. If, within one year of purchase you feel you may have received a defective item, please contact our Customer Service Department for a Return Authorization # to ensure that your issue is resolved in a timely manner. Shipping charges are the responsibility of the buyer and will not be paid by TriggerPoint. Customer Service is available Monday – Friday, 9 am to 6 pm Central Standard Time at 512-300-2804 or customerservice@tptherapy.com. Please call with any questions.

    The correct e-mail that should be used for Warranty/Customer Service issues is listed on their Contact Us page and it currently is: help@implus.com.

    January 4

    A customer service representative replies and she informs me that Trigger Point products have a one year warranty and that I would need to send in the cracked foam roller to their facility in order to receive a replacement. I sent the CSR a reply asking if they had a Canadian address for me to send the foam roller since the shipping cost would be about $20 via Canada Post. I also purchased the foam roller less than a year ago for $20 so it doesn’t really make sense for me to pay an additional $20 to get a replacement one.

    January 5

    The CSR informs me that they do not have any Canadian facilities and that she apologizes for not realizing that I was in Canada since “we cannot ship replacements outside of the United States.” She then asks me if I have checked with Amazon to see if I can make an exchange.

    What a rather strange request. I don’t think Amazon will ever exchange items for a company past 30 days and this has already been 11 months.

    Anyway, I reply back to the CSR stating the above statement and she happily offers to send a replacement to me provided that I include photos of the crack for their records. I oblige and send over my shipping details.

    January 16

    I wasn’t expecting anything in the mail but a box was dropped off at my house with a new Grid X foam roller. Note that I did not receive any e-mails from the CSR to state that the foam roller was going to be sent out. This might have been unnecessary but at least I would know what was going on.

    Conclusion

    After a few back and forth e-mails over a span of two days, I was able to get a replacement for my Grid X Foam Roller sent out. E-mail replies were pretty quick (1 business day or less) and the CSR seemed helpful so those are definite pluses.

  • Right-Handed Writing – Day 28

    I am a lefty. This is my right hand trying to write things.

    20161104
    Humans have to let down their guard at some point. [Robots don’t.] (Melody, Hunter x Hunter S01E56)

    Pen was dying in the first line.

  • Right-Handed Writing – Day 27

    I am a lefty. This is my right hand trying to write things.

    20161103
    What is a bookshelf other than a treasure chest for a curious mind.