One of the many topics covered in my psychology class in nursing school was grief. The patterns of grief we studied were laid out by a Swiss/American psychiatrist, her name was Elisabeth Kubler-Ross. She was a pioneer in her field of near-death studies. She wrote an incredible book on near-death experiences, called On Death and […]
Category: Recovery
“This is not at all what I expected.” You’ve undoubtedly heard someone use the term “managing expectations,” right? Have you heard your doctor use that term? If you have, fantastic! Keep talking with that physician, explore options, and MANAGE EXPECTATIONS. Understand what their role, your role and the outcome of your situation is meant to […]
When you read the above caption, what comes to mind? Romance? That special someone? What about you? That’s right- you- You, yourself…. Over the past month, I came in contact with two incredible women. These two women reminded me about this message. That it’s all about us. We create our own destiny. We have the […]
Everyday, sometime between my first cup of coffee and lunchtime, I get a “bing” on my phone… One of my social media outlets notifying me of my “memories” of the day. I always find a few minutes to indulge in them- they are usually pictures of my children, or some shenanigans my husband and I […]
Once the decision has been made to undergo joint replacement surgery, as with any big surgery, it’s time to start planning. The more prepared you and your family are for the post-operative recovery phase, the smoother you can expect it to go. One huge area to devote time and attention to is your home. Preparing […]
One of my favorite lines I preached to my patients as a hospital nurse… “There’s no Gold Star for pain!” Anytime I was given push back on taking medication for pain. I always kind of envisioned giving my patients those gold foil stars, for a “job well done!” like our teachers used to put on […]
A few weeks prior to my joint replacement surgery, I was required to have pre-admission testing completed. There was a laundry list of things to get done, blood tests, chest x-ray, EKG, a review of systems essentially, to make sure my body was up for the fun and games to come. What had I gotten […]
I’ve always been intrigued by tattoos- the stories behind them, the incredible individuals that sport them. While working professionally, I served on a task force for our State’s Board of Health. Our charge, to help educate tattoo and piercing studios statewide about clean practice- from minimizing the spread of blood borne pathogens to keeping their studios […]
August 1, 2013… I was being discharged from the hospital. It was post-operative day three, following bilateral total knee replacements for me. I remember being so nervous and so excited at the same time- almost as nervous and excited as the day I took my first-born home from the hospital. Although I was in much […]