work
Just thinking about how incredibly fortunate I am and how much I love my job.
Today I went in to speak with a resident who is in our facility for short-term rehab. This gentleman is a tough, cut to the chase kind of guy but earlier that day I got word that he broke down crying and left rehab abruptly. I went in to try and see what was going on, not expecting him to open up at all to me or even to want to talk. Well I went in and simply asked him how he was doing. He starting slowly talking about little things and then began to explain that tomorrow is his last day of radiation and he is scared to death of dying. He explained he has seen so many family and friends suffer with cancer and get chemo and he doesn't want to go through it. I sat and listened to him and told him I'd be just as scared. We continued talking about all of his fears and he said his daughter is getting married in two months and he wants to attend the wedding more than anything. We both agreed that this was his number one thing to be motivated and determined to be as well as he possibly can and to stay positive. We then went on to talk about his life and career and he told me elaborate stories about how he raced and took care of horses for years. At the end of our talk he said to me, "thank you for taking my mind off things and thank you for listening". It meant the world to me.
Another story...
Yesterday I got word that one of my all time favorite residents seemed upset and was yelling at his aide. The aide knew the gentleman well and asked what was up and he said, "I don't know what's with me, I'm depressed". The aide also told me that this particular gentleman tends to get sad around the anniversary of his wife's death. I went to see this resident and found him in the hall. I asked how he was doing and he reached out and hugged me, then began to cry. I asked him to come with me down to my office and he said, "No I just want to be alone, thank you though." I then asked if he'd like to call his daughter and talk with her and he said, "no I want them to call me".
I then went and called both his daughters and explained their dad was feeling a little depressed and it may be worth it to stop in and visit for a little while. They both agreed.
The following day I went into the resident's room and said hello. I then explained I talked to his daughters and they both told me they were coming to visit this weekend. The resident said "I didn't want you to call!! I wanted them to come on their own!" I explained that when I called I just asked how things were with his daughters and if they were planning any visits soon and they both had already made plans to come, before I even called (white lies are okay sometimes). My friend reached out and hugged me again. Then he asked "are you married?" I said no, he asked "are you going with someone?" I said yes. He then said "tell him that I said you're the one". I hugged him and said thank you. He then began to say that his wife passed away around this time and how much he misses her. Again I said I could only imagine and he's lucky to have two wonderful daughters who care a lot about him. I then scratched his back for him, his favorite thing in the world, and we parted.
Today I went in to speak with a resident who is in our facility for short-term rehab. This gentleman is a tough, cut to the chase kind of guy but earlier that day I got word that he broke down crying and left rehab abruptly. I went in to try and see what was going on, not expecting him to open up at all to me or even to want to talk. Well I went in and simply asked him how he was doing. He starting slowly talking about little things and then began to explain that tomorrow is his last day of radiation and he is scared to death of dying. He explained he has seen so many family and friends suffer with cancer and get chemo and he doesn't want to go through it. I sat and listened to him and told him I'd be just as scared. We continued talking about all of his fears and he said his daughter is getting married in two months and he wants to attend the wedding more than anything. We both agreed that this was his number one thing to be motivated and determined to be as well as he possibly can and to stay positive. We then went on to talk about his life and career and he told me elaborate stories about how he raced and took care of horses for years. At the end of our talk he said to me, "thank you for taking my mind off things and thank you for listening". It meant the world to me.
Another story...
Yesterday I got word that one of my all time favorite residents seemed upset and was yelling at his aide. The aide knew the gentleman well and asked what was up and he said, "I don't know what's with me, I'm depressed". The aide also told me that this particular gentleman tends to get sad around the anniversary of his wife's death. I went to see this resident and found him in the hall. I asked how he was doing and he reached out and hugged me, then began to cry. I asked him to come with me down to my office and he said, "No I just want to be alone, thank you though." I then asked if he'd like to call his daughter and talk with her and he said, "no I want them to call me".
I then went and called both his daughters and explained their dad was feeling a little depressed and it may be worth it to stop in and visit for a little while. They both agreed.
The following day I went into the resident's room and said hello. I then explained I talked to his daughters and they both told me they were coming to visit this weekend. The resident said "I didn't want you to call!! I wanted them to come on their own!" I explained that when I called I just asked how things were with his daughters and if they were planning any visits soon and they both had already made plans to come, before I even called (white lies are okay sometimes). My friend reached out and hugged me again. Then he asked "are you married?" I said no, he asked "are you going with someone?" I said yes. He then said "tell him that I said you're the one". I hugged him and said thank you. He then began to say that his wife passed away around this time and how much he misses her. Again I said I could only imagine and he's lucky to have two wonderful daughters who care a lot about him. I then scratched his back for him, his favorite thing in the world, and we parted.