No Refills

Let me start by saying I had to read this article more than once.  It was very difficult for me to want to read this.  I did not find it pleasurable at all; I really thought it was poorly written.  I myself am no (writer by any means) so maybe this is where I lack the skills to say whether this was good or not, I do not really know.  This writer lost me many times within this article, I had a hard time following allot of the language that was used.  Not that this was intended for layman’s entertainment but, I think it could have been more reading friendly, maybe even a bit more simple.

The article’s main point is about the development of new or lack thereof, of pharmaceuticals.  With technology on the rise, you would think that we would have more and more drugs being approved each year, this is not the case.  It seems as though the FDA is to blame for controlling what is approved for retail distribution and what does not.  I have mixed feelings about this entire article.  One statement implies that if the FDA were as stringent as it is today in the 1940′s penicillin never would have been approved due to the significant amount of deaths linked to reactions.  On the other hand, with regulations the way they are today, I feel that maybe we are being spared some horrific side effects.  I am not sure where my beliefs truly lie but I guess maybe that is what this writer’s intention truly was, to make you think.  Is today’s technology more of a hindrance than a help?  Will we ever find groundbreaking treatments for such diseases like pancreatic cancer or AIDS if we continue to go the same route?  Today and tomorrow everything will be about the all mighty dollar and only time will tell.

Every day, I am thankful for my precious baby girl, Elaina.  She is twenty months old and blossoming into a vivacious and wonderful little person.  It is hard for me to think about what I was going through the day she came into this world but I have a scar that reminds me of it every day.

I have been a nurse for four years now and taken care of many different patients with many different ailments.  I myself was never a patient within a hospital until the day I went to give birth to my daughter.  I had waited for this day my entire life, Sunday June 20, 2010.  My husband and I had long awaited this day and it was finally here.  I cannot believe how excited and nervous we were about the arrival of our baby.  I can recall most of my thoughts being full of joy and amazement but, I cannot lie, I was definitely a bit nervous.   My mid wife scheduled me for a voluntary induction due to my advanced maternal age, as the doctors so kindly put it.  Thirty-six is not that old to have a baby, at least I did not think so.  Nonetheless, we were advised that we should induce instead of letting things happen naturally.

We arrived at the hospital a bit after 2pm and admitted to the maternity unit shortly thereafter.  My husband and I met with our mid-wife within an hour or so after our arrival.  She had always been very reassuring and today was no different.  By 4pm, I had received the first dose of medication to get my labor going.  With my husband by my side in the recliner, we sat back and enjoyed some Sunday afternoon programs on the flat screen.  I was feeling great, no signs of labor, not even a twinge.  All I kept thinking about was holding my baby for the first time.  Suddenly, it began, labor was upon me, and pain began to shoot down my spine and both of my legs simultaneously.  Early in my pregnancy, I had decided to try for a drug free birth with the support and guidance of my mid-wife.  Already, I was thinking, am I insane? this was the worst pain I had ever felt in my life, and it had just begun.

 Now I am thinking, maybe this is what people mean when they so you should not mess with mother nature.  The contractions came and went one after another, each as painful as the one before.  Around 8pm, the mid-wife came into to check my dilation progress, I was progressing very well so far, and I was further along than she had anticipated.  Here I thought I already knew what pain was, yeah right.  Hold onto your socks because I was not prepared for what just whacked me in the back and gut.  The intensity was insane and almost immediate.  I was told that all of what I was experiencing was perfectly normal.  I believed it too and continued to suck it up, until the silent alarm on the baby monitor went off.  I am a nurse here so, I knew what the monitor was displaying, well not thoroughly but I at least had a clue.  Something did not feel right, never mind the pain and how I was feeling at this point, something was wrong with

You could not even imagine the amount of nurses and doctors that began to flood my room within the next few minutes.  If I was not nervous already, I sure was now.  My mid-wife and the neonatal doctor informed us that the baby was not tolerating the contractions as well as she should be.  There was no clear reason for this, she could have had the umbilical cord in her hand for all we knew or, something more serious could be happening.  The room that was so calm and comforting with the flat screen mumbling in the background had just transformed into what could be my worst nightmare.

The doctor administered a medication to stop my contractions in hopes that the baby would recover from the stressful situation. Unfortunately, the medication failed to work.  From anesthesiology, the doctor on call, and the pediatric nurses, slowly drifted into my room to attend to the situation we were facing.  My mid-wife then said, “We need to give you an epidural to help calm the baby down, if unsuccessful, we may have to perform a cesarean section to get her out safely.”  I agreed without hesitation to the procedure, with fingers and toes crossed.   I am sure you know what comes next.  Preparation had to begin for the inevitable and dreaded cesarean section. 

My body filled with life began to feel overwhelmed as anxiety filled my veins and fear flooded my brain.  I thought to myself, what if we do not make it through this.  I have always considered a strong leader, and myself to be fearless until this moment.  As a nurse, I know what the risks of pregnancy are, never mind what risks and complications major surgery can conjure up.  Honestly, I did not put much thought into my delivery; I most certainly did not plan on an emergency section!  I kept thinking, I am a nurse but, I am helpless right now, I have to leave it up to those around me and hope they have enough skill to get us out of this.  As staff members don their masks, and protective gear, I lay there in wait.  This feels like the longest ten minutes of my life. 

Transferred from my bed onto a gurney, squeaky wheels turn as we enter the operating room.  The room appears unfamiliar to me, even though I have been here a hundred times before.  I love being here, but not today, not like this.  I am on the other side of the table this time, what is happening right now?  My body felt limp and lifeless as the anesthesiologist bent me forward to administer my spinal block.  My body began shivering uncontrollably as my thoughts ran wildly.  A hand brushed against my cheek and down to my shoulder as a whisper followed, “you’re doing great and we’re going to get your baby out safe and sound”.  I gasped for air as I looked to my right, a set of eyes peering back at me with surety, “breathe she said”.  “Where is my husband?” I quietly asked, “I can’t have our baby without him!”  “He’s right outside and will be with you in a few minutes.” I lay back on the table as oxygen is applied to my face, all I can feel is my heart racing and pounding.  The lights are so bright and cold; the room is quiet, sterile and seems so scary right now.  Where is the comforting voice I had a moment ago? I wonder.  I cannot even turn my head, I cannot breathe! What is going on here?

A familiar face and hand appear to my left my husband is here.  “Everything is going to be fine, I love you”, he says with comfort.  I look up past the blue curtain into the light surrounded my metal; I can see what is going on in the reflection.  Oddly enough, this gives me solace at a time when I have no control.  “We’re going to start”, a voice says from beyond my sight.   I am overcome with great calm as I finally hear her cry within seconds of her being pulled from my womb.  The sweetest sounds in the world to a mother are the first heartbeat and the first time you hear your baby cry.   There she is, I can barely turn my head enough to catch a glimpse of her, she is healthy and beautiful.  The doctor’s continue to repair my abdomen, as my daughter and husband are clear to go to the nursery.  I am alone again, so it feels.  Finally, I can breathe again, it is all over.

As a nurse, I felt that giving birth would be a blissful scenario, because I knew what to expect.  I do not mean to sound over confident by any means; I just never expected my journey to turn out so differently.  After all, of this, I find myself to be more respectful of the patients I take care of everyday.  I am more sensitive, caring and understanding of what it is like to be in their shoes, in their bed, and the one walking down the hall trying to hold the johnny closed in the back.  This experience has changed my life in so many more ways than becoming a mom.  To find myself being helpless, and riddled with fear at a time when I should be calm, confident  and elated I found myself to be, a patient.

The Fat Trap

I am looking at overweight people and myself differently right now than I had in the past after reading this.  I am sure other people would do the same thing if they read it too.  I myself have struggled with maintaining a good weight for quite some time now, whether it is because I do not exercise enough or I eat too much junk, it does not matter in the end.  This article discusses that being overweight has more to do with biology and hormones rather than just being lazy and lacking the drive to succeed.   There have been many studies conducted to try to figure out the secret to permanent, and successful weight loss with no true results.  It seems as though we have allot more to learn about the way our bodies work and what we can do to try and counteract some of the unwanted effects.   All of the information sounds like it may be promising but serious challenges for people lie ahead.  In reading this, I was surprised to find out that weight control is not just mind over matter.

I found this article to be very interesting.  A bit drawn out at times to be honest but I did find some of the examples to be helpful in painting a better picture for me.  I liked how the writer gave many examples of real people with their experiences and challenges with weight gain/loss.  I find that using real people helps me personally connect to what is going on in this article.  After reading this, I am compelled to want to learn more about the developments and research behind this article.

Every day, I am thankful for my precious baby girl, Elaina.  She is twenty months old and blossoming into a vivacious and wonderful little person.  It is hard for me to think about what I was going through the day she came into this world but I have a scar that reminds me of it every day.

I have been a nurse for four years now and taken care of many different patients with many different ailments.  I myself was never a patient within a hospital until the day I went to give birth to my daughter.  Sunday June 20, 2010, was the day I had waited for my entire life.  To bring another life into this world.  My husband and I had long awaited this day and it was finally here.  I cannot believe how excited and nervous we were about the arrival of our baby.  I can recall most of my thoughts being full of joy and amazement but, I cannot lie, I was definitely a bit nervous.   I was scheduled for a voluntary induction due to my “advanced maternal age” as the doctors so kindly put it.  Thirty-six is not that old to have a baby, at least I did not think so.  Nonetheless, it was advised that we take the induction route over letting things happen naturally.

We arrived at the hospital a bit after 2pm and were admitted to the maternity unit shortly thereafter.  My husband and I met with our mid-wife within an hour or so after our arrival.  She had always been very reassuring and today was no different.  By 4pm, I had received the first dose of medication to get my labor going.  With my husband by my side in the recliner, we sat back and enjoyed some Sunday afternoon programs on the flat screen.  I was feeling great, no signs of labor, not even a twinge.  All I kept thinking about was holding my baby for the first time.  Suddenly, it began, labor was upon me, and pain began to shoot down my spine and both of my legs simultaneously.  Early in my pregnancy, I had decided to try for a “drug free” birth with the support and guidance of my mid-wife.  Already, I was thinking, “am I insane?” this was the worst pain I had ever felt in my life, and it had just begun.

 Now I am thinking, “maybe this is what people mean when they so you shouldn’t mess with mother nature”.  The contractions came and went one after another, each as painful as the one before.  Around 8pm, the mid-wife came into to check my dilation progress, I was progressing very well so far, and I was further along than she had anticipated.  I was then given another medication to help along my labor.  Here I thought I already knew what pain was, yeah right.  Hold onto your socks because I was not prepared for what just whacked me in the back and gut.  The intensity was insane and almost immediate.  I was told that all of what I was experiencing was perfectly normal.  I believed it too and continued to suck it up, until the silent alarm on the baby monitor went off.  I am a nurse here so, I knew what the monitor was displaying, well not thoroughly but I at least had a clue.  Something was wrong, never mind the pain and how I was feeling at this point, something was wrong with my baby.

You could not even imagine the amount of nurses and doctors that began to flood my room within the next few minutes.  If I was not nervous already, I sure was now.  My mid-wife and the neonatal doctor informed us that the baby was not tolerating the contractions as well as she should be.  There was no clear reason for this, she could have had the umbilical cord in her hand for all we knew or, something more serious could be happening.  The room that was so calm and comforting with the flat screen mumbling in the background had just transformed into what could be my worst nightmare.

The doctor administered a medication to stop my contractions in hopes that the baby would recover from the stressful situation.  Unfortunately, the medication failed to work.  From anesthesiology to the doctor on call, and the pediatric nurses, began to slowly drift into my room to attend to the situation we were facing.  My mid-wife then said, “We need to give you an epidural to help calm the baby down, if unsuccessful, we may have to perform a cesarean section to get her out safely.”  I agreed without hesitation to the procedure, with fingers and toes crossed.   I am sure you know what comes next.  Preparation had to begin for the inevitable and dreaded cesarean section. 

My body filled with life began to feel overwhelmed as anxiety filled my veins and fear flooded my brain.  ”What if we don’t make it through this”?  I have always considered a strong leader, and myself to be fearless until this moment.  As a nurse, I know what the risks of pregnancy are, never mind what risks and complications major surgery can conjure up.  Honestly, I did not put much thought into my delivery; I most certainly did not plan on an emergency section!  I kept thinking, I am a nurse but, I am helpless right now, I have to leave it up to those around me and hope they have enough skill to get us out of this.  As staff members don their masks, gowns and protective gear, I lay there in wait, it feels like the longest ten minutes of my life. 

Transferred from my bed onto a gurney, squeaky wheels turn as we enter the operating room.  The room appears unfamiliar to me, even though I have been here a hundred times before.  I love being here, but not today, not like this.  I am on the other side of the table this time, what is happening right now?  My body felt limp and lifeless as the anesthesiologist bent me forward to administer my spinal block.  My body began shivering uncontrollably as my thoughts ran wildly.  A hand brushed against my cheek and down to my shoulder as a whisper followed, “you’re doing great and we’re going to get your baby out safe and sound”.  I gasped for air as I looked to my right, a set of eyes peering back at me with surety, “breathe she said”.  “Where is my husband?” I quietly asked, “I can’t have our baby without him!”  “He’s right outside and will be with you in a few minutes.” I lay back on the table as the oxygen was placed on my face, all I can feel is my heart racing and pounding.  The lights are so bright and cold; the room is quiet, sterile and seems so scary right now.  Where is the comforting voice I had a moment ago? I wonder.  It seems that I cannot even turn my head, I cannot breathe! what’s going on here?

A familiar face and hand appear to my left, my husband is here.  “Everything is going to be fine, I love you”, he says with comfort.  I look up past the blue curtain into the light surrounded my metal; I can see what is going on in the reflection.  Oddly enough, this gives me solace at a time when I have no control.  “We’re going to start”, a voice says from beyond my sight.   I am overcome with great calm as I finally hear her cry within seconds of her being pulled from my womb.  The sweetest sounds in the world to a mother are the first heartbeat and the first cry of their baby.

The Pacific Blue Cross ad is being shown in Canada.  It is one of many ads used to promote and sell health insurance.  Everyone in Massachusetts is required to have it, not everyone does.  The cost of insurance continues to rise right along with the amount of uninsured individuals.  After talking with some family and friends, the average the cost of monthly health-care coverage to be approximately $800.00 for a family plan.  The out of pocket expense is actually based on families that have benefits through their employer.  Imagine how much rates would be without any benefits, or how much would it cost a retired elderly person?

 I think this Blue Cross advertisement targets the elderly population.  I chose this ad because it is simple and blunt, in your face really.  I cannot imagine another seeing anything “good” about this ad except that if you had insurance, you would be alive!  This ad depicts the fate of an elderly person if they were to fall and were uninsured.  The black and grey shadowing of the seemingly cold stairway sends chills down my spine.  Bold dark letting is gradually smaller as the stair reach the bottom.  The only bright thing you see is the blue lettering in the company’s logo.   This is a prime marketing move if you ask me, straight for your gut.  What are you going to do, ignore what could happen to you without health insurance?  You could break a hip and not be able to afford the services needed to fully recover.  With Pacific Blue Cross, it is not too late to get the help you need if you are covered under their plan.  This implies, “there is a light at the end of the tunnel” if you choose us to take care of your needs. 

In closing, I feel this is a very effective way to sell insurance.  Short, concise and to the point, no magic mirrors here.  I personally don’t care for the marketing approach due to the harshness but for some, could it be their reality?  I wonder if this were a commercial, what words would be spoken, whom would they have for actors?  Would those actors be offered a discount on their own policy?

The Quiet Health-Care Revolution

 Health-care costs continue to rise right along with insurance policy restrictions.  With the increasing cost of everything these days, full-time employees are struggling with just “getting by”.  For the elderly, the challenges to get & afford quality healthcare has become more of a battle.  The article, The Quiet Health-Care Revolution, discusses how a new approach to managing elderly health could become the next best thing in medicine, as far as I am concerned. 

A gastroenterologist named Sheldon Zinberg with some help came up with the notion that an unconventional approach to providing effective medical care actually worked.  In 1993, he established the CareMore Medical Group, an affiliation of physicians that provided coordinated health-care.  By 1997, CareMore provided services exclusively to the elderly population with Medicare.  Zinberg’s approach was simple, if you focus on prevention of illness and decrease noncompliance of patients, illness and cost of care would decrease. 

I was surprised to read that more insurance companies or physicians were not already involved in this type of care.  This approach makes perfect sense, ”an apple a day” way of thinking in today’s world.  Find the underlying cause of the problem and there lies the solution, be proactive, be assertive, and be successful.  If all of health-care was driven this way, I think that life expectancies would increase, diseases and infections would decrease and fewer coverage cuts would take place.

I really enjoyed how the writer introduced different patient stories in the article before stating the point.  I think if I was not in the health-care field, it would have drawn a clear picture of what the importance of great care means.

My hometown was a wonderful (or choose your own adjective) place to grow up.

Laci had a rather eccentric style.

Mr. Brown is the worst teacher I’ve ever had.

The room seemed very institutional.

Boston as a child was fast paced, cold, overwhelming and not child friendly growing up.

Laci wore dresses with sneakers, colored tights and her boyfriend’s football jacket. 

Mr. Brown was always texting and chewing on gum during exams, he was more of a hindrance than a teacher.

The room was bright white, cold and reeked of bleach.

HEALTH AND MEDICINE:

I am currently a nurse unit manager practicing under my LPN license.  I would like to go forth with the medical theme for the obvious reasons and to challenge myself to dig deeper into what I love so much.  The medical field is so vast and ever changing within itself.  On a daily basis, I work with many different people from patients, to residents and staff, which all play a vital role in (why I do what I do).  I love being a nurse and I am currently working on furthering my education to ensure all doors are open to me within the health care field.  I would like to propose this theme to discuss my own experience of “being a patient” and how that has changed the way I look at some things.  Maybe I can argue some points about the cost of health care/Medicare and the services provided or lack thereof.  Quality of life within a long-term care facility, or end of life choices could be options also.  I observe so many things through out one day that my possibilities are endless.  I would like to research some of these topics and dig deeper into the root of all of it!

TECHNOLOGY:

Technology today makes the world go around for most people including myself.  I love the new wave of gadgets and applications you can now carry in your pocket or purse.  Unfortunately, things are getting a bit impersonal due to all of these changes.  From the way we pay our bills to texting, and even with this hybrid class, technology is busting at the seams.  I would like to consider doing this as a theme to argue points about how society uses this to do even the simplest tasks today compared to ten years ago.  Does/will the economy struggle with this?  How many people are unemployed because of this?  I think I could go in so many directions with this topic and learn allot from it as well.

How to write? what do I write?, that is the question.  I have had difficulty with this for as long as I can remember.  My experiences with writing have never driven me to want to write, so to speak.  I consider myself to be of average intelligence, and I am creative in the right environment but, still, I struggle with this. 

 I perceive writing be the portal to one’s soul, into a place where magic happens, where a story is created and the truth is told.  This is all pretty heavy stuff if you ask me.  I do not consider writing to be as simple as “what you write to your friends”, maybe if I did, I would not struggle so much.  Even in a class such as this, I find it difficult to write given a direction to go in, never mind if I did not have one.  Do not get me wrong, I would love to learn how to write but I feel as if I hit a wall every time I begin. 

Reading is another sore subject for me.  I have always resented the book list you get while in school.  I read when I need to read for school or for work.  I have never really gotten into reading anything for pleasure, not even the weekly tabloids.  Honestly, I have never really tried to get involved in reading for any other purpose other than to learn.  

I do hope that through this course I will find myself more comfortable with both writing and reading.  I am not as close-minded as I may sound here.  I would love to pick up my tablet and read something because I want to read it not because someone assigned it to me.  As for the writing part, this is the end of my first blog and I at least made it through this so far so, I’m on a roll.