So, I have stated many times before how I may be one of the toughest cookies to crack, but a patient today has finally broken down my barriers placed around my emotions.
A 20 Year old ambitious young male saw me walking from my place of employment and stopped to ask advice. This patient was seen in our infectious disease unit, and told me his back story. He was molested at the age of 16 by 13 male perps, and in the process of being examined was diagnosed with HIV. I'm not certain of his time frame, but he explained he was in school for nursing & wanted advice on the nursing field. He burst into tears as he explained his dreams had been shattered & his T-cell count had dropped to a whopping 120. As I listened to his back story I couldn't help ,but say..."here I am complaining about the small things in life, and someone has been deprived of their future".
So my question is, have you ever had that moment where you couldn't help but be reduced to tears by a patient?
So many times. I think the one that bothered me the most was a woman whose husband had put a shotgun in her mouth to kill her but all it did was destroy much of her face. She could never eat again, had limited vocalization and a tiny little opening for a mouth. Truly a horrific injury. She was young and this was now her life. I thought what would I do if I were her? He destroyed her life and he was in jail but what was she to do now? It tore me up inside to imagine that someone she once loved would do this to her. I wonder what other abuses she endured before it came to this. How terrified she must have been.
Wishinonastar, BSN
1 Article; 1,000 Posts
So many times. I think the one that bothered me the most was a woman whose husband had put a shotgun in her mouth to kill her but all it did was destroy much of her face. She could never eat again, had limited vocalization and a tiny little opening for a mouth. Truly a horrific injury. She was young and this was now her life. I thought what would I do if I were her? He destroyed her life and he was in jail but what was she to do now? It tore me up inside to imagine that someone she once loved would do this to her. I wonder what other abuses she endured before it came to this. How terrified she must have been.