miracle of the year

i had the privilege of witnessing a miracle at work yesterday.

in case you haven't noticed, i'm sort of pessimistic. as an oncology nurse, i have acquired a dark sense of humor. you've maybe heard me say, "everyone dies." cuz i feel that way sometimes. i call myself "negative nelly."

but yesterday, i was proven wrong. i witnessed a miracle. and then and only then, i LOVE being wrong.

mr. m left my unit after more than 6 months of hospital stay. in fact, i admitted him. i don't even remember when it was. but some horrible tragedy had befallen his family. his wife had been attacked and because she was his caregiver, while she was in the hospital recovering, mr. m stopped caring for himself and stopped taking his transplant medications. because of this, he developed a VERY serious case of graft versus host disease. which prompted high doses of steroids. which made him susceptible to all sorts of infections. and infections he got. by the dozen. he must have been intubated 2 or 3 times. he had surgery on his leg because it was thought that he had necrotizing fasciaitis (an often lethal infection). he ended up getting FIVE pressure ulcers on his coccyx. he lost almost all of his independence. the only thing he could really do for himself was keep fighting. through months and months of rehab and recovery.

i must have thought, over and over, "he's a goner." in fact, i know i said it. we all did on my unit. NOBODY can overcome ALL OF THAT.

but he did. as mr. m wheeled himself out of our unit last night, i ran behind him to say a final goodbye. i got all choked up and had tears in my eyes. the other nurses i was working with yesterday were ALL new. they had been on 8NE less time than the patient. so, by myself, i stood at the elevator and clapped. i told mr. m that he deserved a standing ovation and a round of applause. never before have i been so impressed with somebody's will and determination, with his stamina and strength.

mr. m gets the miracle of the year award. here's to hoping that 2012 has a miracle or two as well!