What high school senior girl in 1982 wouldn’t have given her coveted leg warmers in exchange for a month of staring dreamily, from bed, at Remington Steele?
Ah, the lengths to which we go.
Before the fun could begin, I agonized over two impending surgeries. Total hip replacements, two weeks apart, were scheduled to correct ravages from a decade of Juvenile Rheumatoid Arthritis. The month-long hospital stay four hours from home limited family visits.
Through the post-surgery haze, it became apparent that this month might not be the pure awfulness I’d anticipated, thanks to the perfect roommate.
We were the same age, shared the same sense of funny and the same huge crush on Pierce Brosnan.
Joan was from Ohio and was recovering in the hospital for a month, too.
Our room was seldom quiet. Laughter was the order of the day. Nurses routinely looked in, smiled and pulled the door shut to soften the noise.
What did we find so funny? Everything: hospital rules, healing contraptions, the food.
Our room became the nurses’ new break room. We were guaranteed to lift their spirits. They doted on us, and we loved the extra attention.
One nurse became our designated favorite. We kept her past her break time, enjoying the camaraderie. Understanding our teenage need for non-hospital food, she’d occasionally smuggle in fast food, making our day in a major way.
The only time we simmered down was during rounds, when our surgeons beckoned funny out and seriousness in. We struggled to make each other laugh when talk of our second surgeries entered conversation.
On those surgery days, our room quieted. No laughter, little talk, a few tears. We respected each other’s privacy when we couldn’t muster our usual gregariousness.
Noisometer readings skyrocketed when we felt better. Our door, once again, closed softly.
We were our own entertainment, long before cell phones, computers or other digital gizmos.
While our beds faced the same way, we didn’t often see each other. Healing from hip replacement and back surgeries required uncomfortable amounts of time on our backs, staring at the ceiling, listening to the other’s disembodied voice.
“Hey, whatcha doin’ over there, Joan?”
“Hanging around. How about you?”
We’d roar at our joke, as Joan’s recovery often required her to be in a sling of sorts, suspended from the ceiling. She’d be in it, then out. When put back into it, we’d break into a chorus of the old cowboy song “Back in the saddle again.”
Our unusual situation led to the idea of posters for shared entertainment. Real or imagined, posters of our beloved Pierce on the ceiling made us smile. After all, we needed something to take our minds off staring straight up, nearly 24/7.
Kudos to our nurses, a quarter-plus century later. They cared for and entertained us, among the scads of patients they helped throughout their careers. They likely don’t remember us, yet they made an undeniable difference.
They gave life back to two teenage girls whiling away their last schoolgirl summer days, in not-so-awful August 1982.
Stickability Specialist Kris Harty helps healthcare teams persevere through Compassion Fatigue. Kris is Chief Inspiration Officer of Strong Spirit Unlimited. By sharing Stickabilities, or tools, she learned from her own medically challenging life requiring a Walking Stick, Kris encourages healthcare professionals to Stick to it – no matter what! Diagnosed at age seven with Juvenile Rheumatoid Arthritis, she draws on 40 years of insight, research and stories as a healthcare recipient. She is the patient who now returns to say “You make a difference. Thank you.” Her message is content-rich, practical, engaging and inspiring – and sporadically funny. Kris reduces burnout, turnover, and Compassion Fatigue by re-engaging healthcare professionals, particularly nurses. Kris Harty is an inspirational keynote speaker, author and small group facilitator who helps people overcome challenges by creating unstoppable momentum in life and work. Clients say her message is life changing. Call 877.711.STICK, e-mail StrongSpirit@StrongSpiritUnlimited.com, or visit www.StrongSpiritUnlimited.com.
