Over a year ago now…almost TWO years…
Smiles disappeared and our eyes began to tell our story.
Forced to use the twinkle in our eye to show our happiness and allow tears to show our despair and heartache behind the mask now protecting each one of us.
Each one of us feeling scared, not knowing if “we” would be the next one… Would it be grandma? Would it be the young neighbor down the street?
Nobody, yes NOBODY knew.
Schools shut down and forced children to learn in a new way. A new way that for some proved to be beneficial and for others challenging. None the less each of us had an opportunity to grow depending on how the situation was approached and ultimately handled.
There are many things an individual or family can do to participate in ending or prolonging the pandemic (however you choose to look at it)…
Some have chosen to get vaccinated
Some have chosen not to get vaccinated
Some have chosen to protest
Some have chosen “self treatment”
Some choose to wear masks
Some choose not to wear masks
At the end of the day some choose protection and some choose not to be protected. Those that choose not to be protected still DEMAND that they receive the same damn treatment when they can’t breathe, when they are gasping for air…where do we go? What do we do?
The answer is unclear as to where we go and what we do. We are in a cycle that doesn’t seem to want to break…unfortunately there are multiple factors to this cycle not ending. At this point, I have all but given up. I think most of us in healthcare have “given up.” We are exhausted emotionally and physically; we have so much desire and ability, but the will to keep going gets more difficult each shift.
I think I speak for many of us in healthcare, especially those of us working the backline (to many the Frontline) please be considerate of others as we enter the holiday season.
Think about others…you may have no risk factors but maybe the person standing next to you is recovering from chemo…
Maybe try and think about the old saying, “if you don’t have anything nice to say then don’t say anything at all.” So much of this started over the news, politics, etc. Let’s just all do our part?
Try to look at things with a different lens if possible…
Finally, as we approach two years into this pandemic, please don’t forget about those traveling to care for others. I can’t begin to tell you how many nurses, respiratory therapists, CT techs, CNAs, etc say, “you know, we used to be heros and now its worse than before and nobody even stops to recognize or realize the stress, loneliness, or hell we are all going through.”
Rainbows Amidst Chaos 