“It’s been tough,’’ said Dickerson. “I deal with other neurological illnesses that I live through. It’s not like it completely came out of the blue. Still, it was …
“I’m not much of a hospital person, and to have an attack at a game, that was especially frightening. It’s kind of good to know what it is, that I can get medicated for it and take care of myself.’’
Dickerson returned to duty Tuesday night and expects to work a full schedule the rest of the season. He finds something of a silver lining in his situation.
“I was tested for a tumor and multiple sclerosis,’’ he said, “so this is not the worst thing in the world, though it is troublesome.’’
Still, he acknowledges the cruel Catch-22 nature of his situation: His attacks can be triggered by anxiety, but how is he not supposed to worry about it?
“It’s this mad circle,’’ he said. “If you don’t stress about it, you don’t think about it, you don’t worry about it, it helps, but of course you’re going to stress about it, think about it, worry about it.’’
He hopes being back on the sideline will provide some peace of mind.
“I have a massive appreciation for my job,’’ said Dickerson, who was quick to praise Kyle Draper for stepping in for him. “I just love doing it.
“Not being there in general was very hard. Not being around the people I work with and the team, if it’s possible, it made me appreciate it even more.
“Knock on wood, I’ll never have another issue.’’
Chad Finn can be reached at finn@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter @globechadfinn.
