To the Nurse Who Saw How Scared I Really Was in the Hospital

Dear Nurse,

I’ve always hated hospitals even if I was being admitted for something simple, like a round of tests. I would still be terrified. This past October I was admitted for that exact reason, more tests. I had to change respirologists because I wasn’t being followed at my local hospital anymore and I had to go out of province to find a new one, therefore the tests. It’s also easier to get tests done inpatient then outpatient that is why I was admitted. The life of a spoonie! So I was in a new hospital, in a different city, in a different province, far away from my family and friends and all alone. I was doing my best to keep a level head and be tough, which at one particular moment was very difficult. I had gotten bored of Netflix and I couldn’t talk to my friends because I’m broke and that would be a long distance charge. I was looking around my hospital room and I started to cry.

I was sitting on the chair with my laptop on a table in front of me when you walked in. I didn’t say how scared I was, or how I was very close to a breakdown, but it must’ve been written all over my face. You were just checking on me, and since I wasn’t sick there wasn’t any care that had to be done, but no one had seen me in a couple hours and you decided you’d better check on me. Then you saw my face and sat down on the couch across from and just started talking. I don’t even remember what we talked about. It was probably about school and my friends; I probably asked something about your shifts, mundane things like that.

It wasn’t mundane, though. It was so much more. It made my stay easier, and you distracted me from my fear, even for a few minutes. So thank you! Thank you for caring about a freaked out 21-year-old, for checking where I lived after I used words you didn’t know and then understanding why I was admitted and why I was alone and figuring I could use some company, and sitting with me probably at a time when you should have been leaving the hospital.

Thank you so much for going the extra step and doing what I really needed, even when I wouldn’t admit it. I know it wasn’t what you planned for that day, but thank you for doing it anyway.

From,

Mariah

The Mighty is asking the following: What’s the best thing a medical professional has said to you related to your (or a loved one’s) disability, disease or mental illness?  Check out our Submit a Story page for more about our submission guidelines.