Our eldest daughter is a nurse - an Intensive Care Unit nurse. She sees pain and sadness every day that she puts on her uniform and enters the ICU door. I've been an ICU nurse, many years ago when I was still actively nursing, and I know the heartache that can present itself in that unit.
I've also been a patient in ICU, and I know the quality of care that most ICU patients receive. I had top notch care when I was there for two days following neck surgery. - and I wasn't that sick!
Today, our Sara has to deal with not only the most critical heart patients, seniors who have debilitating illness and are coming to the end of their days on this earth, and believe it or not, even patients who are suffering the withdrawal symptoms from drugs or alcohol -the DT's! Because she works in a small, rather rural community hospital, she has a combination of all sorts of patients.
The other day, the poor darling was overwhelmed! Her shifts are 12 hours, plus the additional time it takes to finish charting or pulling all her work together for the next shift. Working four of those days with several very critically ill patients and someone having the DT's is trying, indeed. She was exhausted!
One elderly gentleman gave her the excuse she needed to let out a bit of her overwhelm and exhaustion. His wife had been in ICU for a couple of weeks, hanging on by a thread and on life support. She improved ever so slightly. Bless their hearts, either he or his daughter had been there almost constantly. When she seemed to recognize their presence, her husband stood beside her bed and sang to her - "Amazing Grace." Sara said that it was amazing alright, and it was Grace alone - given to the patient, the doctors and the nurses that had brought her that far.
"How could we not cry, Mom?" she asked.
"Well, I'd be crying for sure," I replied. "And I don't see a thing wrong with it - just shows two things: your exhaustion and more importantly, your soft and gentle heart. I'm proud of you, girl!"
Grace - the unmerited divine assistance of God for the regeneration and sanctification of mankind.
We need a whole lot of it, don't you think?
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About Me
- Life....It's Fixable
- Alto, New Mexico, United States
- Drs. Ron and Nancy Rockey are a vibrant couple who use their personal experiences of childhood wounds, marital pain, emotional healing and graduate education to benefit others. Ron is an ordained and experienced clergyman. Nancy is an RN. Each holds a M.Ed., specializing in Marriage and Family Therapy and a Ph.D. in Clinical Pastoral Counseling. They prefer to work in a classroom setting, where life-changing knowledge can be imparted to an interested audience. The Rockeys' unique style includes team lecturing, interacting with each other and modeling healthy conflict resolution. The seminars they teach are 12-18 hours in length, and are usually held on a weekend. They travel internationally to teach and to acquaint others with their follow-up programs, designed for small, gender-specific groups. These are taught by video and include the use of individual workbooks and a sharing process.
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