30 Days of Thanks - All things Medical

When the alarm went off at 5am this morning I knew I was in for a long day.  I had to have TJ at the surgery center by 6am for his knee surgery.  Having been to the knee surgery rodeo before I had a pretty good idea what he was in for.  Of course, he is a 6'5" guy who played the 2nd quarter of the Silver Creek VS Skyline football game on a blown out knee, so he may be just a bit tougher than me.....wait, I gave birth to five kids so I am pretty darn tough as well....Perhaps  the jury is still out on that one.... Anywho!  It is emotionally draining as a parent to bring your kids to basically strangers and let them take your child to a near-death state and fix stuff on them.  Imagine walking into the hospital and saying:

"Good morning Doctor, this is  TJ. Although this is the son who kicked out his Dad's windshield in a crazy fit of rage when he was 10,  he has become quite a nice young man.  I actually would like for you to bring him back to me when you are done creating an ACL for him and rooting around in his knee for other broken parts"

The cool part?  These total strangers do just that.  (Well, most of the time!!)  We go into them and place our total and complete trust in them, and they deliver.  The medical industry is a unique industry.  So many other jobs you can do stuff yourself.   I googled how to fix my toilet, avoiding calling a plumber.  My boys cleaned my gutters out last weekend, avoiding the need to call an handy-man to take care of that job.  My friends have helped paint the walls in my house, avoiding me calling a painter.  My future son-in-law worked on my car, saving me money a mechanic would charge..... you get the idea.  But I have yet to meet anyone who says,
" I had knee surgery last year, I am pretty sure I remember what they did so I will be happy to perform that surgery for you!"  (Word to the wise, if anyone ever comes up and says these words to you, RUN, do not walk away from them....they probably use a chainsaw and wear a hockey mask while performing the operation.)

So tonight, THANK YOU to all the people who spend their lives trying to help other people feel better.  Thank you for being willing to spend all those years in school learning how to do a Dacryocystorhinostomy,  figure out where my acromial is,  when to prescribe Benlysta,  learn how to poke needles in to hurt the least, how to comfort us, how to stand there while we throw up and not go running out of the room to throw up themselves, and work outrageous hours.  

Take a few minutes to be grateful for the amazing people in your life who help you feel better, and take care of you when you are sick.  They are out there, making a difference, one random person at a time!!