Margaret pickens

Joined June 2021

2 stories

Stories (2)

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High school daze
there were six of us always together in high school. Good times for all;trouble for all. I was the unofficial leader of the group. My best friend was Dawn. She lived on the road behind me. We were together about every day.
By Margaret pickens5 years ago in Fiction
Life’s Ups and Downs
I am 57 years old.I’ve done great things in my life. Then I’ve done the worst things. The great things are when Iwas a critical care nurse for a large hospital group.I truly loved my job;caring for the sickest people in the hospital.I’ve kept the sickest patients alive all night and I’ve helped the sickest die with dignity.I remember one lady in particular. Mrs May was 78 years old and in our critical care unit for three months. She was on a ventilator the entire stay. She was sedated and never conscious for her stay. Her husband came every day to sit at her bedside. I was there to care for him and his emotional needs just as much as I was there to care for her. I worked 12 hour nights at that time. My care for her was mostly comfort measures as aposed to heroic measures. She was a ‘no code’ or DNR- do not resuscitate. The things I did for her were to keep her comfortable and her husband comforted and informed on her status. I washed her hair and styled it like the pictures of her hanging on walls. I painted her nails a pretty pink as that was her favorite color. I spent the time with her family to know these details. These care measures didn’t improve her psychical condition but did help her husband feel she wasn’t suffering. Yes-I also maintained her airway,suctioned her lungs frequently,and assessed her condition continuously. I drew her blood and kept up with her medications. But the maintaining of her beauty and physical care was just as important. Some of the nurses felt Mrs.May shouldn’t have been left on life support for so long as she was dying. But I understood that her husband needed this time to love her and prepare to let her go. I wasn’t there the night she slipped away but her husband called me the next night that I was a work just to talk. He continued to call me every week or two just to talk about how he was managing without her. This went on for a few months then I never heard from him again. My job was finally done. I had done all I could and was satisfied with the results. Pink nail polish still makes me think fondly of Mr.and Mrs.May.
By Margaret pickens5 years ago in Psyche