LAUGHTER IN THE EMERGENCY ROOM?????????

Good morning friends,

Over last weekend Ronnie and I spent 9 hours in the ER at two hospitals in our area to determine the cause of his excruciating sore throat.

My honey’s throat had begun bothering him last Tuesday and by Wednesday it was his idea to go to the doctor, thinking it was some type of upper respiratory infection.  The doctor gave him 2 injections and 2 prescriptions late afternoon on Wednesday.  Thursday morning the throat was still raging and continued all day. Friday the pain was more severe and he went back to his doctor and received another prescription to soothe (numb) his throat…assuring him it was too soon for sore throat to improve.  All afternoon the pain accelerated, finally resulting in a visit to the ER.

I have to tell you I couldn’t imagine how painful it had to be…after all this is a man who doesn’t take pills (even for headaches) unless forced to.

When we arrived at the hospital not many minutes passed before we were called back to the examining area.

Time seemed to stand still after that while sick children and emergencies of all kinds filled the spaces beside and across from us. 

All the while there was a nurse named Thom who seemed to be flying through the air at times…taking an IV to a room with a baby who was dehydrated and very unhappy with needles being stuck in her; fielding questions from concerned family members ( including me)…comforting a man with several issues who was waiting for tests and pain meds before being admitted. Thom was unflappable – “all of these patients are mine….doing the best I can” with a smile, as he kept moving, his long gray hair flying behind him. So began our 12 hour laugh marathon.  Truly!

Doctor MacDonald finally arrived and what a pleasant, woman she was.  Her sense of humor and bedside manner made us all at ease and immediately grateful that she was the doctor in charge this night.  After examining Ron and asking many questions she told us that she would like to have a blood work-up done and order a CT scan of the soft tissue in his neck to be sure there was nothing blocking his throat.  In the meantime she would order IV pain meds.

More sick folks arrived.  A wait began - first for the IV and bloodwork and all the time Nurse Thom moved in and out of our area spouting witticisms that kept us in stitches.  As the evening lengthened my guy finally received his pain meds and was able to rest as the pain eased.

The CT scan was done and afterward we learned that there was a large abscess at the back of Ron’s tonsils which needed attention by an Ear, Nose and Throat specialist and this hospital did not have one available.  It was recommended that he be moved to another ER in the city and Dr. MacDonald went to arrange it.  It was now after midnight and we’d been up since early Friday morning.  At about 1:00 Saturday morning we were told that the arrangements had been made and just before 1:30 the ambulance began the trip.  Traci and I drove ahead of the ambulance but were quickly overtaken by the ambulance as it whizzed by.

After arriving at our destination we spent nearly 4-1/2 hours in their ER; again being kept calm and at ease by another personable nurse – Nurse Brian.  He was kind to all of us and one of the funniest guys we’ve ever met.  When Ron was admitted and taken to his room around 5:45 AM and settled in his bed…a knock on the door brought in another nurse who we quickly found had the gift of joy.  Nurse Kevin rolled in with his computer cart with a big smile and as he began asking the myriad of questions they are all required to ask, a conversation developed between him and his patient and laughter rang out in the room.  It was nearly the end of his shift and when he said good-by at the door it was like we’d known him a very long time.

Just before the shift change Michaela, the Charge Nurse, came in to set Ron's IV of meds and hydration.  She told us the doctor would be coming by later in the morning. As I lay in the recliner on the opposite side of Ron’s bed with my eyes closed I could hear a lively conversation going on between Nurse Michaela and my tired guy and more laughter.  Shortly after that I left to come home and eat and try to sleep a little.  We’d been up 37 hours and this girl was tired.

While driving home….I recounted all that I am writing you today and I was, one more time, in awe of how the Lord watched over us during this interruption in our lives.  He guided every hand, every mind.  He placed exactly who would soothe our spirits and as I remembered, I saw anew that Yes, the joy of the Lord is my strength!!

Laughter was the medicine that held us all together. 

The bible says that “there is a time to weep and a time to laugh” (Ecclesiastes 3). Doctors all over the world have written papers on the power of laughter to heal – to heal bodies and to heal minds.

On Friday and Saturday, February 3 and 4 I witnessed in myself and in those around me the power of laughter to soothe our spirits and to quiet the beating of our hearts.  Helping us to concentrate not on what might be…no, to focus on the here and now.

Around noon Saturday, the Ear, Nose and Throat Specialist, Dr. Rogers, came by Ron’s room and performed a procedure that removed the abscess.  When he awakened in our bed on Sunday morning his throat did not hurt.  Later he noticed some discomfort which we suppose to be normal.  He is, after all, still on heavy duty antibiotics to be sure the bacteria that caused the poison to form leaves his body completely.  Today there is no pain!!!

Yes, it made us catch our collective breaths.  This crisis gave us pause.

We are so blessed.  Blessed beyond measure because our great and mighty God revealed himself in the circumstances.  Every person we came in contact with was smiling, kind, good natured and compassionate.  That is pretty unusual…..it was definitely “a God event”!  His handprints were on every moment!

Thanks be to our God and King…..our everything!

Praying for you, until next time,

Judy

PS – Do you have a”God Event” in your life you’d like to share?  I’d love to hear about it!