I LOVE YOU...

It's easy to get caught up in the little things in life and in doing so, I tend to forget what really matters...

I have to admit, the littlest of things would get me all emotional and bothered...but today 2 very important events reminded me of what DO matter.....

Event 1: I had a patient come down for a scan, the doors to the scan room opened and I saw this man that was tall and thin and honestly he looked like a victim of cruel punishment in a concentration camp. Except that wasn't the case, instead the battle this patient was fighting was CANCER. He was so thin and fragile and in so much pain. He was cold so after I helped him get onto the scan table, I went over and grabbed a warm blanket from the warmer and as I did this, I don't know why but I thought what if this was my family member? Even closer, what if this was my husband? My Michael...

After I got him his blanket I looked at his arm band to confirm his name and date of birth and I realized he 

was only two years older than me and here he is fighting this horrible battle with cancer. 

I've been thinking a lot lately, compared how I was from the first day I started this job and how I am today. Yes it's true, I've kind of learned to deal with my surroundings, but I don't think someone can ever get "used" to this. It's hard seeing someone going through these struggles with cancer and certain illnesses and it's even harder seeing their family going through it with them.

Event 2: The emergency department had admitted 2 patients, an elderly couple.The wife 90 years old, the husband 88.  I thought it was cute how they put them in a shared room with their gurneys next to each other so they could be by one another.

I brought the wife over for her scans and told her husband we'd take good care of her. He replied with a smile and a thank you. She became very restless during her visit with us and started trying to get off of the scan table, we had to use restraints on her so she wouldn't get hurt but it wasn't strong enough.We eventually had to call her nurse over to give her another sedative. This patient had dementia and because she wasn't used to what we were doing she was frightened and worst of all her husband wasn't there by here side. She yelled for him and kept saying, "I wanna go home, no more."

We told her to calm down, we're almost done, do it for your husband so you can go back to see him soon...I could tell it helped her calm down a little...

So you might be wondering how did they both end up in the ED together...

The wife was laying on the couch and she fell, the husband who has COPD (chronic.obstructive.pulmonary.disease) relies on an oxygen tank that distributes oxygen to him through a nasal canula that he wears in his nose. 

When his wife fell, he tried to help her, but being weak himself, he couldn't do it on his own, so he decided to go get help from a neighbor but didn't take his tank with him. On his way to get help, he got weak and dizzy and as a result fell and hurt himself.

The neighbors called the the ambulance and they were both brought in. 

Now here's what really got to me, when we were done with his wife in the ED, I took her back to the room. I said to the husband, "She's back!"

He asked me how she did, I told her she's a fighter and fought us at first, but she did it. He smiled. I'm sure he knew that was going to happen.

He looked over to her told her "Welcome back, I missed you."

I put her gurney a little bit closer to his,  and as I was walking away I looked back and she was trying to get off to go to him, but couldn't because the rails on her gurney were up. I saw her reach for him and I saw the look in his eyes. 

I will never forget the amount of love they had for each other. I could see it in his eyes, his pain because there wasn't much he could do for her at the time.

Of course when Michael came to pick me up from work, I hugged him a little longer than usual. I love him so much and I know that when we grow old together I will love him just as much as the first day if not MORE.

I know every wife will say they have the BEST HUSBAND, but I really do have the best husband. He's also the best father to our children and I love seeing him with them.

Neither of us are PERFECT and we often get into our little disagreements. I'd be lying if I was to say every day is a perfect day because it's not, but I can say that at the end of everyday, we try to make sure we tell each other, "I LOVE YOU," and mean it. And hug and kiss before we say good night.

I feel that this is really important and without it we wouldn't be as strong as we are...

So with that said, FAMILY is what MATTERS...

Michael.Lillyanne.Jacob

 

I don't live a perfect life, I just live a BLESSED one, I can't say that enough...