BIG THANK YOU TO EVERYONE WHO PARTICIPATED IN THE HOLIDAY HAPPINESS MARATHON!!!

The HOLIDAY HAPPINESS MARATHON Concludes!!!!! 

What a wonderful week of stories of service and gratitude.  It really warmed my heart to hear my colleagues share happily about patients and to hear patients share with joy about their physicians.  And I'm such a sap--I cried with every story!!!

I hope that you all enjoyed the stories!  I REALLY appreciate all the time my physician colleagues and my patient readers put into writing these stories!!  All of you are busy & had your own responsibilities, but you still paused to be of service to others by sharing your story.

THANK YOU!!!!!!

A Doctor is Grateful for Making a Difference on an Average Day at a Rural Clinic! The Holiday Marathon Continues!!

The HOLIDAY HAPPINESS MARATHON Continues!!!!! 

Welcome All My Guest Bloggers--Doctors, Nurses & Patients whose stories warm our hearts....Here is Another Story From a Doctor!

In the hustle of day-to-day operations, I have found it easy to forget why I became a doctor. It becomes more a routine and that’s not what I set out to do. 

I work in a clinic that serves a large rural area and the goal is: go, go, go... see as many patients as fast as you can.   One patient needed a little more of my time. She had been to several docs before with the same problem and each time dismissed with the same diagnosis. I sat with her asking questions and explaining to her what I was thinking.  

Turns out she was sicker than either of us initially thought and I sent her to the hospital for more workup. She returned several weeks later wearing oxygen. She then reached and hugged me and said, “You saved my life.” It reminded me that the little things I do on an average day at work makes a big difference to that person.

Dr. S

Physician

Little Rock, AK

Thank you Dr. S for sharing your story with us!! Readers, lets send a little love to our doc who is willing to work in a rural area to give much needed service!  Comment away! :-))

Previous HOLIDAY HAPPINESS MARATHON Posts:

• A Pediatric Anesthesiologist Loves Being a Doctor & Is Grateful for Patients' Parent's Trust!!
• After Having Brain Tumor Surgery, A Patient is Grateful for "The Best Nurse I've Ever Had!"
• She lost 60lbs, Got Her Health Back and Is Grateful for Her Doctor for Saving Her & Her Husband's Life by Recommending a Plant-Based Diet!!
• A Psychiatrist is Grateful She Helped a Patient Get His Life Back After Alcoholism & Liver Disease
• A Plastic Surgeon Goes the Extra Mile & is Grateful for Learning An Important Lesson From the Patient!
• Her Husband Had Six Skull Fractures & The Surgeon Took The Time To Make Them Feel Like They Were His Only Patients That Day!! The Holiday Happiness Marathon Continues!!

A Plastic Surgeon Goes the Extra Mile & is Grateful for Learning An Important Lesson From the Patient

The HOLIDAY HAPPINESS MARATHON Continues!!!!! 

Welcome All My Guest Bloggers--Doctors, Nurses & Patients whose stories warm our hearts....Here is Another Story From a Doc!

As the hierarchy goes, being a junior fellow is not a glamorous job even when the field is cosmetic surgery. 

One particular patient had undergone a very large surgery and was experiencing lots of anxiety over things that were normal. I tried to reassure her over the phone to no avail. I then left my home, at 10pm and drove 15 mins to her hotel room to convince her that things were ok.   I received several text messages and phone call over the next week from her and her loved one and each time I had to keep from sounding irritated at such trivial stuff. 

When I saw her in the office she exclaimed that she was so thankful for my patience. She stated that my explanations helped her prepare for what was to come.   It illustrated that what I expect as normal is totally foreign to the average patient. I learned from my patient to continue to use my ability to make things plain to help them through a stressful time in their life.

~Dr. S,  Plastic Surgeon
Little Rock, Arkansas

Thank you Doc for sharing your story with us!!  Readers--lets send a little love back to Dr. O in the comments!!  Write away!! :-))

Previous HOLIDAY HAPPINESS MARATHON Posts:

• A Pediatric Anesthesiologist Loves Being a Doctor & Is Grateful for Patients' Parent's Trust!!
• After Having Brain Tumor Surgery, A Patient is Grateful for "The Best Nurse I've Ever Had!"
• She lost 60lbs, Got Her Health Back and Is Grateful for Her Doctor for Saving Her & Her Husband's Life by Recommending a Plant-Based Diet!!
• A Psychiatrist is Grateful She Helped a Patient Get His Life Back After Alcoholism & Liver Disease

A Psychiatrist is Grateful She Helped a Patient Get His Life Back After Alcoholism & Liver Disease ~ The Holiday Happiness Marathon Continues!! ~

The HOLIDAY HAPPINESS MARATHON Continues!!!!! 

Welcome & Thank You To All My Guest Bloggers--Doctors, Nurses & Patients whose stories warm our hearts....Here is Another Story From A Doc!

The Moment That Sealed My Conviction For A Career in Medicine

Dr. Cawthorn-Opalinski, Psychiatry

San Antonio, TX

In my intern year on call, I was seeing a patient on the medicine floor as a consult. It was in August so my anxiety was high as well as my stress level given I was 6 months pregnant.


 The patient was admitted for alcohol detox, and suffered chronic liver damage from the years of heavy alcoholism. I spoke with him for about 1 hour including discussion of clinical depression and many loses secondary to alcoholism including employment, marriages, familial relationships (including children), financial independence.  Using motivational interviewing I was able to elicit insight and movement from precontemplation to contemplation in the stages of change.  Since I saw him on consults, I did not have direct follow up, and I did not know what occurred after our discussion.


 A couple of months later, I received word in my resident meeting that the patient had stopped drinking and was able to reconnect with his children which furthered his motivation.  He had written a comment card in the patient advocate office about how impressed he was with my bedside manner, and he felt that our discussion changed his life.


 I was thankful for the recognition, but more than that thankful that I played a role in helping a family regain a relationship with their father, son, brother... This was 3 years ago, and although I have never seen him again, I think about that interaction and hope for his continued sobriety and healthy relationship with his family.


 This was a moment that sealed my conviction for a career in the medical field particularly psychiatry.

Thank you Doc for sharing your story with us!!  Readers--lets send a little love back to Dr. C in the comments!!  Write away!! :-))

Previous HOLIDAY HAPPINESS MARATHON Posts:

• A Pediatric Anesthesiologist Loves Being a Doctor & Is Grateful for Patients' Parent's Trust!!
• After Having Brain Tumor Surgery, A Patient is Grateful for "The Best Nurse I've Ever Had!"
• She lost 60lbs, Got Her Health Back and Is Grateful for Her Doctor for Saving Her & Her Husband's Life by Recommending a Plant-Based Diet!!

She lost 60lbs, Got Her Health Back and Is Grateful for Her Doctor for Saving Her & Her Husband's Life by Recommending a Plant-Based Diet!! The Holiday Happiness Marathon Continues!

The HOLIDAY HAPPINESS MARATHON Continues!!!!! 

Welcome All My Guest Bloggers--Doctors, Nurses & Patients whose stories warm our hearts....Here is Another Wonderful Patient Story!

I've been thin most of my life but about 10 years ago, I started putting on weight due to a bad knee.  I couldn't exercise enough to keep the weight down.  About 5 years ago, I underwent a total knee replacement which didn't go as well as I had hoped.  Again, I couldn't do any extensive exercise other than work on my range of motion.


About a year ago, I was in such shape that I became hysterical if I saw myself in a mirror and I certainly didn't go shopping for clothes - it was too traumatic. 


I finally visited my doctor who told me that my only hope was to go on a plant-based diet for the rest of my life.  He explained what it was and even loaned me a book about it (The China Study).  I purchased Dr. Caldwell Esselstyn's book, "How To Prevent and Reverse Heart Disease" and off I went. 


I tossed out everything that wasn't part of my new Vegan lifestyle because if it was there, I knew I'd weaken.  After about 4 months, I noted that my clothes were loose so I weighed myself - I had lost 60 lbs.  I felt great with renewed energy and was able to look in the mirror again without going into a depression.  I will always thank my doctor, Dr. Don Wagner, for saving my life.


Now, fast forward to July of this year.... my husband was involved in a terrible motorcycle accident that should have killed him, both by statistics and by actual injuries. He was rushed to the Head Trauma and Burn Center in Las Vegas and was in the hospital from the Saturday morning it happened until Thursday when he came home with home nursing teaching me to change his dressings.  


We attribute his ability to heal so fast to our plant-based diet (& prayer) - there is no other answer.  It just reinforced our determination to adhere to our plant-based diet and, again, we thank Dr. Wagner for his insistence on getting us started on the right path.


~Sylvia in Laughlin, Nevada ~

Thank you Sylvia for sharing your inspiring story on the power of a plant-based diet!!  Readers--lets send a little love back to Sylvia and her doc for her amazing transformation!!  Write in the comments :-)!! :-))

Previous HOLIDAY HAPPINESS MARATHON Posts:

• A Pediatric Anesthesiologist Loves Being a Doctor & Is Grateful for Patients' Parent's Trust!!
• After Having Brain Tumor Surgery, A Patient is Grateful for "The Best Nurse I've Ever Had!"
• "You Heard Me and I Left the Appointment with HOPE"~A Primary Care Doc Shares A Story of Grace

"You Heard Me and I Left the Appointment with HOPE"~A Primary Care Doc Shares A Story of Grace~The Holiday Happiness Marathon Continues!!

The HOLIDAY HAPPINESS MARATHON Continues!!!!! 

Welcome & Thank You To All My Guest Bloggers--Doctors, Nurses & Patients whose stories warm our hearts....Here is Another Story From A Doc!

A Reminder That What I Do As A Doctor Is By Grace and Not of My Own Power.

~Dr. O, Family Medicine & Psychiatry~

Pittsburgh, PA

I have many stories of special experiences I shared with patients, but the most recent was a lady who came to the clinic that had not been seen by a doctor in about 6 months. She had significant substance abuse and mental health history and felt no one believed her when she described her physical health symptoms so she had stopped seeing her previous doctor. 


She was anxious, tearful, and certain she was going to die. I listened to her concerns and her daughter who accompanied her to the visit. When they left the office I had written her 3 new prescriptions and ordered lab work to treat the most concerning issues she described. 


 Two weeks later she returned, unaccompanied, for her follow-up visit to review her labs and to see how she was tolerating the new medications. When I walked into the room she hugged me and began to cry. She then said, "If I would not have come to see you that day I would not be sitting here right now. You heard me and I left the appointment with hope." 


 All of the aches and pains from the previous visit had improved to the point she was demonstrating stretches she could now do. She also had her voice back (literally) and sang a verse of a song which she had not been able to do "in forever". 


On the busy clinic days, little moments like these remind me what it's really all about and that what I do is by grace and not of my own power.

Thank you Doc for sharing your story with us!!  Readers--lets send a little love back to Dr. O in the comments!!  Who else LOVES their PCP?  Write away!! :-))

Previous HOLIDAY HAPPINESS MARATHON Posts:

• A Pediatric Anesthesiologist Loves Being a Doctor & Is Grateful for Patients' Parent's Trust!!
• After Having Brain Tumor Surgery, A Patient is Grateful for "The Best Nurse I've Ever Had!"

After Having Brain Tumor Surgery, A Patient is Grateful for "The Best Nurse I've Ever Had!": The HOLIDAY HAPPINESS MARATHON continues!

The HOLIDAY HAPPINESS MARATHON Begins!!!!! 

Welcome All My Guest Bloggers--Doctors, Nurses & Patients whose stories warm our hearts....Here is Our FIRST Patient Story!

After having brain tumor surgery, I was in the ICU at the hospital for 2 weeks.  There, I had a nurse named Liz.  Her family was originally from the Bahamas, so she had the remnants of an islander accent.  I was never as happy as when I heard that voice on the other side of the curtain.

She was the best nurse I’ve ever had! And it wasn’t because she was the sweetest, kindest nurse I have had.  In fact, she was mostly matter of fact, firm, and business-like.  But …. She listened.  She didn’t ignore me when the pain in my head was overwhelming, and I rocked back and forth on my hospital bed in pain.  She matter-of-factly told me that I needed to calm down and stop crying because it would only make my head hurt worse, if I did that.  But… she got me the pain medication that I needed.  Notice I didn’t say that I wanted…. It was what I needed.

She had to tell me the hard things and show me the not so pleasant things.  But….She listened.  She answered my questions, even though they were most likely quite obvious to her.  She didn’t get annoyed when I asked her the same questions for the fifteenth time.

She was the one who listened to my husband as he expressed his frustration over my overly emotional behavior after surgery, and she was the only one who explained that this was normal after brain surgery, and it would go away.

Liz was the consummate nurse:  a professional who did her job well, and made sure that I was doing what I needed to get better.  At the same time, she was personable:  Listening to her patient, showing care and concern, being willing to carry on a conversation instead of just walking in and out of my room.

To all the nurses out there who are like Liz – I thank you and your work does not go unnoticed!

~Joanna Shumaker in Tennessee

Thank you Joanna for sharing your story with us!!  Readers--have you ever had a wonderful experience with a nurse?  Share with us in the comments! :-))

Previous HOLIDAY HAPPINESS MARATHON Posts:

• A Pediatric Anesthesiologist Loves Being a Doctor & Is Grateful for Patients' Parent's Trust!!

The Holiday Happiness Marathon Begins!: A Pediatric Anesthesiologist Loves Being a Doctor & Is Grateful for Patients' Parent's Trust!!

The HOLIDAY HAPPINESS MARATHON Begins!!!!! 

Welcome All My Guest Bloggers--Doctors, Nurses & Patients whose stories warm our hearts....Here is Our FIRST Story!

Why I Am Honored To Be A Doctor:
~Dr. I, Pediatric Anesthesiologist , Dallas, TX~



HRD's goddaughter
(with the permission of her mom)



I love being a physician.  As I finish my training to become a pediatric anesthesiologist, I am honored that parents entrust their children’s safety to me every day.

Each time I walk into a new patient’s room, I try to earn first the child’s and then the parents’ trust.  As a parent to two little boys, I don’t even want to imagine how hard it must be to separate from your baby before their heart surgery, or their brain surgery, or even just before they have tubes placed in their ears for chronic ear infections.  

For me, my favorite part of being a doctor is playing with the kids and distracting them from what could be a terrifying situation.  If I can keep a child calm and happy as they breathe my anesthetic gases until they fall asleep, they usually wake up calm and happy.  I am not perfect, and every child doesn’t wake up calmly, but the challenge of accomplishing that goal and giving my patients a positive experience keeps me going. 

There are a lot of frustrations in medicine, but doctors became physicians because we love what we do.

Thank you Doc for sharing your story with us!!  Readers--lets send a little love back to Dr. I in the comments!!  Write away!! :-))

So Exciting!! The Holiday Happiness Marathon Starts TODAY on the blog!!

STARTING TODAY!!!

ITS THE HOLIDAY HAPPINESS MARATHON!!!  Doctors, Nurses & Patients Share Special Medical Moments That Will Warm Your Heart During the Holiday Chaos!  

LOOK for posts throughout the day today and for the rest of the week!!

ONE DAY LEFT to contribute medical stories to the Holiday Happiness Marathon!! Join us!! :-)

If you are a patient, have you ever had a good medical experience that made you grateful for your healthcare provider and modern medicine?  Or, if you are a healthcare provider do you remember any moments with patients that made you happy you became a doctor, nurse, etc?  


Are you willing to briefly share one of those stories with my other readers?  (stories should be no more than 1-2 paragraphs in length).
From December 19th to December 25th I'm going to host the "Holiday Happiness Marathon:  Doctors, Nurses & Patients Share Special Medical Moments!"  In the midst of all the chaos of the season, this post series is a special week to pause for a quick moment & smile as you read positive stories about healing :-)


I already have doctors, nurses & patients lined up to share their stories (I've gotten some already from the docs & they are AMAZING), but there is room for some more!! 


So if you want to take a quick break from the holiday madness & join the story-telling marathon, shoot me an email with your story (no more than 1-2 paragraphs long) to happyrehabdoc@gmail.com and I'll add you to the marathon!  I need all the stories by no later than the end of the day on THIS Wednesday, December 14 (THAT IS TOMORROW!!).  It doesn't have to be perfect, it just needs to come from you! :-)

 Hope to hear from you!