Reassurance

Darling Lee - My sister is a very senior nurse, she is nearly 60 now, and has been nursing since see was 17, loves it, wouldn't do anything else, even if you paid her too. 

She once told me its not the patients who yell blue bloody murder you worry about, but the ones who are very quiet.

To yell loudly you have to be strong enough to take a deep breath, kind of makes sense doesn't it.

Had a real chuckle when I read your posting, know what it is like having a real phobia, mine is dentists, as i was tied down as a child to a dentists chair, still cannot dooo dentists without panic attacks.

Dr has prescribed Valium, I take 15mg half and hour before appt, everything lovely and hazy, and I manage, though not easily, days in run up to appt nighmare.

Why do the nurses have to be worried about the patients that are quite?

My thinking has been, they are unable to take a deep breath, my husband with his heart failure/ congestive heart failure, has had both,  his general heart failure has never resolved, goes very quite, when he is getting oxygen deprived, and or very noisy, bad tempered, its a warning sign, of him lacking oxygen supply to his brain.

When he goes quite, that means he is getting worse and cannot catch his breath, due to the amount of fluid in his lungs.

I ring for an ambulance, and grab my bag of copies of hospital files. Have got to the point of I know more than the ER about his condition, the whys and wherefores, than them waiting for his file from storage, I have essential documents at home, in an old computer bag, that weighs about 10 pounds or more.

Also I have had the experience of grandson, seriously ill, eyes sunken, we were taken in straight away, he was sooo ill, he was just sort of groaning, nurse took one look, and hit the emergency button in triage, and we were surrounded by Dr's and nurses, it was hours before he had the strength to start cyring, he also hated needles that were in his little arms, daughter and I had to hold him down, for hours, otherwise the nurses said they would use restraints, not for us, we managed by ourselves.

Awww im sorry to hear you and your family have had to go through all that

Sarah - I am blessed with my family despite health conditions.

Husband still with us even though Dr's at heart hospital said he could not survive more than 3 months.

Here we are nearly five years later, powering on, weeelll maybe not powering on, but walking around, looking after each other, I with my not so good hip replacement, and him with his heart.

Like I say to the Dr's when they ask, we are each others carer, and we muddle through, and have learnt to adapt, he mows the lawns on a ride on lawn mower for example. I do the washing, and he pegs out. We do the vacumming over a day rather than over a couple of hours. We grow a garden, flowers and veges, I drive the car, he has fade outs, as I call them, so is no longer safe driving. Yeahh we muddle through.

Awww that sounds lovely. But i can relate to that in my own way haha

Janie, i was you 6 weeks ago, couldnt sleep kept crying couldnt see myself doing any of the things i read other people doing, believe me, if there was one thing i am so glad i have done it was this, the 6 weeks has gone so quick, believe me,, onces its been done you feel lkeca different person, just remember the person you were before pain thats the person you are about to become. Try and relax over christmas, just think, new year new you. Xx

HI Janie

As we are about to have surgery at the same time and are both terrified, it would be great to keep each other spirits up during recovery. Hopefully we will be like other posters in a few weeks and saying what was I worried about