H is for Hospitals
Some of you may know that I was once very interested in the medical field. I took "pre-nursing" courses in Colorado and worked at a small hospital in Alamosa. I loved it all.
As a kid, I was fascinated with hospitals. I remember one time in particular when we were at a big city hospital and I just wandered around absorbing all the activity - all the order and effectiveness. To me, it looked like one big team made up of doctors, nurses, lab techs, janitors, and administrators who all worked together to help save lives. I wandered down halls I'm sure I wasn't supposed to go down and eavesdropped on doctors talking a language I was dying to understand. I think that was when I decided I must work in a hospital some day. And I did...
For about two years, before we had kids, I worked at the hospital in Alamosa. I started out in Materials Management, which is just a fancy word for supply stocking. While the job wasn't very glamorous, I actually had a good time. What was really fun about it was that I had a behind-the-scenes look at all the departments of a hospital. I didn't love the fact that my desk was in a dark basement where the morgue should have been but I worked with some great gals and we laughed a lot. You sort of have to when you work in the bowels of the earth like that.
After almost a year working in the basement, I was ready for a change and interviewed for a job on the third floor (woo-hoo) to work in Diabetes Education as a secretary. Unfortuanetly being in the abandoned wing of the third floor isn't much better than being in the basement. We were the only ones in that wing of the third floor and I was usually by myself which was very lonely. The job itself was fun because I got to meet a lot of new people and help them deal with their diabetes but, ultimately, it wasn't the job for me. I ended up quitting working at the hospital altogether to go to school full-time. I had already become a certified EMT (Emergency Medical Technician) and knew I wanted to pursue a nursing degree.
In one of my college classes, there was a lady who worked at the hospital in the Dialysis unit. We quickly became friends and she encouraged me to apply for a job as a Dialysis technician. With my EMT certification, I was qualified and I'd get lots of practice in patient care. Obviously, it was an opportunity that I didn't pass up. I loved my job in Dialysis. I enjoyed getting to know the patients because they came regularly. It wasn't easy when a pateint would pass away but I still treasured the experience. Of course, the patients all had their quirks and, to me, that is what made it so fun. Some were grumpy and crusty (but soft on the inside), some were mean, some were funny, some were needy, some were weird, some were angelic. They were all fun to get to know. I got very good at making conversation while I stuck their arms and connected them to the machine. When an emergency happened, I felt confident and knew what to do. It was like I was a different person when I was working - for once I felt I had the ability to really help people in a concrete way. The Dialysis job was my favorite job but the hours were awful. If I had the early shift, I had to get up at 3:00 a.m. in order to be at work by 4 a.m. Then I worked a long twelve-hour shift and came home exhausted. And I was still taking classes at the local college.
I got pregnant with Brooklyn and decided to quit my job in Dialysis so that I could be a full-time mom at home. It wasn't too long after Brooklyn was born that we joined MAF and started the process to come to Ecuador. I finished my pre-nursing courses but it suddenly didn't seem all that important to me, now that I had my sweet baby and we were well on our way to being missionaries. Today, I look back on my time working in a hospital and I'm very grateful for the experiences I had there. I sometimes wonder if God might open the door for me to go back to nursing school someday - and sometimes I wonder if that is what I'd really want or if I could stomach it any more!
*****
H is also for:
Hot Tamales. My favorite candy of all time. We can't get those here. So if you want to send a package.....
Hot Dogs - or Tube Steak, as we like to call it. I am ashamed to admit it, but my children have been eating hot dogs for lunch all week. I never really understood it till I had kids - hot dogs are a magical tool in every mother's arsenal. Just don't think about what is in them.
Hair. Did I mention I'm hating mine? I know, it is terribly shallow for a missionary to be so concerned with this but I do not like my haircut. I keep massaging my head and saying "grow, grow, grow" but so far it hasn't worked.
Headache. I had a terrible headache yesterday. Actually, it was probably a migraine. I've never had an issue with headaches before but since moving to Ecuador, Sean and I both have had some pretty awful bouts with headaches and migraines. I'm pretty sure it has to do with the climate, the mold, and colds that leave our sinuses infected. Whatever it was, it sent me to bed crying and nauseated. Wow. Excedrin finally did the trick, along with some rest in a dark, quiet room. I was completely useless as a mother but, thankfully, the worst of if happened once Sean was home to help with the girls. I'm so glad I feel better today and I'm almost desperate with fear that it will come back.
As a kid, I was fascinated with hospitals. I remember one time in particular when we were at a big city hospital and I just wandered around absorbing all the activity - all the order and effectiveness. To me, it looked like one big team made up of doctors, nurses, lab techs, janitors, and administrators who all worked together to help save lives. I wandered down halls I'm sure I wasn't supposed to go down and eavesdropped on doctors talking a language I was dying to understand. I think that was when I decided I must work in a hospital some day. And I did...
For about two years, before we had kids, I worked at the hospital in Alamosa. I started out in Materials Management, which is just a fancy word for supply stocking. While the job wasn't very glamorous, I actually had a good time. What was really fun about it was that I had a behind-the-scenes look at all the departments of a hospital. I didn't love the fact that my desk was in a dark basement where the morgue should have been but I worked with some great gals and we laughed a lot. You sort of have to when you work in the bowels of the earth like that.
After almost a year working in the basement, I was ready for a change and interviewed for a job on the third floor (woo-hoo) to work in Diabetes Education as a secretary. Unfortuanetly being in the abandoned wing of the third floor isn't much better than being in the basement. We were the only ones in that wing of the third floor and I was usually by myself which was very lonely. The job itself was fun because I got to meet a lot of new people and help them deal with their diabetes but, ultimately, it wasn't the job for me. I ended up quitting working at the hospital altogether to go to school full-time. I had already become a certified EMT (Emergency Medical Technician) and knew I wanted to pursue a nursing degree.
In one of my college classes, there was a lady who worked at the hospital in the Dialysis unit. We quickly became friends and she encouraged me to apply for a job as a Dialysis technician. With my EMT certification, I was qualified and I'd get lots of practice in patient care. Obviously, it was an opportunity that I didn't pass up. I loved my job in Dialysis. I enjoyed getting to know the patients because they came regularly. It wasn't easy when a pateint would pass away but I still treasured the experience. Of course, the patients all had their quirks and, to me, that is what made it so fun. Some were grumpy and crusty (but soft on the inside), some were mean, some were funny, some were needy, some were weird, some were angelic. They were all fun to get to know. I got very good at making conversation while I stuck their arms and connected them to the machine. When an emergency happened, I felt confident and knew what to do. It was like I was a different person when I was working - for once I felt I had the ability to really help people in a concrete way. The Dialysis job was my favorite job but the hours were awful. If I had the early shift, I had to get up at 3:00 a.m. in order to be at work by 4 a.m. Then I worked a long twelve-hour shift and came home exhausted. And I was still taking classes at the local college.
I got pregnant with Brooklyn and decided to quit my job in Dialysis so that I could be a full-time mom at home. It wasn't too long after Brooklyn was born that we joined MAF and started the process to come to Ecuador. I finished my pre-nursing courses but it suddenly didn't seem all that important to me, now that I had my sweet baby and we were well on our way to being missionaries. Today, I look back on my time working in a hospital and I'm very grateful for the experiences I had there. I sometimes wonder if God might open the door for me to go back to nursing school someday - and sometimes I wonder if that is what I'd really want or if I could stomach it any more!
*****
H is also for:
Hot Tamales. My favorite candy of all time. We can't get those here. So if you want to send a package.....
Hot Dogs - or Tube Steak, as we like to call it. I am ashamed to admit it, but my children have been eating hot dogs for lunch all week. I never really understood it till I had kids - hot dogs are a magical tool in every mother's arsenal. Just don't think about what is in them.
Hair. Did I mention I'm hating mine? I know, it is terribly shallow for a missionary to be so concerned with this but I do not like my haircut. I keep massaging my head and saying "grow, grow, grow" but so far it hasn't worked.
Headache. I had a terrible headache yesterday. Actually, it was probably a migraine. I've never had an issue with headaches before but since moving to Ecuador, Sean and I both have had some pretty awful bouts with headaches and migraines. I'm pretty sure it has to do with the climate, the mold, and colds that leave our sinuses infected. Whatever it was, it sent me to bed crying and nauseated. Wow. Excedrin finally did the trick, along with some rest in a dark, quiet room. I was completely useless as a mother but, thankfully, the worst of if happened once Sean was home to help with the girls. I'm so glad I feel better today and I'm almost desperate with fear that it will come back.
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