savingthebrain Posted October 4, 2010 Share Posted October 4, 2010 (edited) Gosh, I feel foolish for not seeing this thread and introducing myself in the "My Story" discussion. Anyway, here's what I wrote there: ---------- Unfortunately (or rather fortunately) I don't have a personal story to tell. Instead I'm a registered nurse working in a neuro ICU. We have a huge number of patients coming in for subarachnoid hemorrhage, and they stay with us for quite some time (usually 7-14 days) as we monitor them for cerebral vasospasms and other complications. As our docs have always reminded us, the fatality rate for SAH is 50% So for those of you who survived and lived to tell the tale, you beat the odds! Congratulations! ---------- It's so good to see how people do after everything's resolved! We get very sick patients, and the moment they're better, they leave the ICU, get transferred, and we rarely see how they are in the end. Stories and wonderful outcomes are always so humbling and invigorating! Edited October 5, 2010 by jess Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lin-lin Posted October 4, 2010 Share Posted October 4, 2010 (edited) Hey, great to have a nurse on board! I'm sure we'll keep you very busy here! I have a huge respect for ICU nurses; you really are something special. After experiencing ill health (first and only time with my SAH!) I now understand that physical recovery is only part of the process, because our emotions are important too. So much goes on 'inside' after SAH, but good health is often measured with physical milestones only. I found this site quite late in my recovery (around 6 months in.) I wish someone had told me about the site when I first left hospital because I felt quite isolated. I genuinely thought my fatigue and tiredness were 'failings' in me and many newbies to this site believe the same. Thanks for taking an interest in us 'mentaloids' (as Skippy calls us!) Ha! P.s Fantastic avatar, by the way! Edited October 4, 2010 by Lin-lin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sallym25 Posted October 4, 2010 Share Posted October 4, 2010 Hello Kath, Welcome to the site. Oh I do hope you wont be bombarded by lots of questions from us. It will be nice to hear from someone who has seen a range of patients and their different outcomes after haemorrhages. It's a real shame you girls don't often get to see the end results of all your patients. You all do a totally invaluable job for the likes of myself. I am told that I personally was an absolute horror for the staff to cope with during the aftermath of my craniotomy. I can never make up for my bad behaviour. I do hope you are aware of how sorry we feel for these things in the following months and years. without people like you, a lot of us would not be here today. Thank you for all you do. Sally xxx Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KelBel Posted October 4, 2010 Share Posted October 4, 2010 Hello Kath! Wonderful to have you on board! I hope you can gain a wealth of info and insight from us as we can gain from you too. Re-iterating what the others have said; nurses do a marvellous job and we are grateful for the care we receive. It must be so hard to look after people for days or even weeks and then they leave the wards and you don't hear anything more about them. Too many to remember I should think! In fact I did always mean to send a thank you card to the ward, but I did write xmas cards for the wards I was on before I left... I remember phoning the neuro ward a month after I left and I spoke to a male nurse whose name I did not recall from my time as an inpatient (and I did recall quite a lot of what went on) yet he remembered me well!? I must have made an impression! Kel x Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maggie Posted October 4, 2010 Share Posted October 4, 2010 Hi Kath, thank you so much for doing the job your doing it really is amazing,I don't know how you put up with the stress of it all and the hard work and long hours.But I am glad you do and am eternally grateful. Thank you:-D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Janet Posted October 4, 2010 Share Posted October 4, 2010 Hi Kath Welcome I can only reiterate what the others have said you nurse on ICU and HDU do a fantastic job of helping us back to health. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tina Posted October 4, 2010 Share Posted October 4, 2010 Hi Kath a very warm welcome to BTG....i went back to ICU HDU to say a huge thank you to all the wonderful nurses a very emotional time for me. You do an amazing job. Great to have you onboard...take care Love Tina xx Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
adam Posted October 4, 2010 Share Posted October 4, 2010 Hi Kath What more can I say that hasn't already been said. All the nurses in Neuro ICU do a wonderful job and we never get a chance to say how grateful we are. It's not just the surgeons who fix us that make us better, it's the dedicated nurses who are there for us in our hour of need, without you and your colleagues I'm sure many of us would not be here. Thankyou to you and your wonderful colleagues Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bogbrush Posted October 4, 2010 Share Posted October 4, 2010 Hello Kath and welcome to BTG At the risk of being repetetive, You nurses do a wonderful job. I'll never forget the ones who looked after me during my 2 weeks in hospital. Glad to have you on board Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tennissmithy Posted October 4, 2010 Share Posted October 4, 2010 Hi Kath Welcome to this wonderful website and again to copy everyone else- you do a wonderful job and someonw that we wouldn't be able to do without. Where abouts in the country do you work?? Look forward to finding out more about you xx Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jess Posted October 5, 2010 Share Posted October 5, 2010 Hi kath welcome to btg. Look forward to chatting sometime probably after i come back from turkey now, cause i got loads of ironing and everything to do bought all new stuff but its all creased. Anyway glad you joined us here, and yes the nurses do a fab job only can repeat what everyone ese has said. Talk soon. Jess.xxx Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gill C Posted October 5, 2010 Share Posted October 5, 2010 HI & welcome Kath, would be good to hear from the other side of the hospital bed. I was in HDU for about 10 days & they did an amazing job although I didn't enjoy my stay there as unlike most of the patients in there I was concious most of the time (asleep the rest of the time). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Louise Posted October 5, 2010 Share Posted October 5, 2010 Hi Kath Welcome, I'm saying ditto too, the HDU nurses do a wonderful job I dont remember my time there well nowhere really -no memories AT ALL...... THANK-YOU..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
savingthebrain Posted October 6, 2010 Author Share Posted October 6, 2010 Thanks for the lovely welcome, everyone. It's great that you can all find humor in your hospital experiences! Don't worry, we nurses know any brain condition "brings out the devil" in every person. Other than the constant pain, occasional nausea, and being confined in bed for days and days, people are, at best, irritable. At worst, some brains momentarily lose some functions, including inhibition, temperance, tact and reason. So we're used to patients pulling their lines out, jumping out of bed and yelling obscenities. And of course, almost everyone who's returned to thank us after discharge are actually really kind, thoughtful people. Smithy, I'm actually based in the US. A big wave to all you UK folks from across the Atlantic! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
winter Posted October 7, 2010 Share Posted October 7, 2010 Kath - Thank you for coming to this site! And of course, as the others have said, great thanks to you and the nurses for the care received while in the hospital. I was in ICU for 9 days and then moved to regular ward. I had lots of wonderful nurses who took great care of me! Hope to see more of you here. Best wishes to you! Carolyn Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skippy Posted October 7, 2010 Share Posted October 7, 2010 Hi Kath A very very warm welcome - can only echo what the others have said abut ICU Nurses - mine were fantastic in the first hospital - would've taken one home if I could have:lol:. Looking forward to chatting more - I think it'll be great having a nurse "on board" - even if we don't directly ask you questions, you can chip in with any advice when you see some needed. Take care Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JayKay Posted October 7, 2010 Share Posted October 7, 2010 Hi there and welcome to BTG! It's lovely to have another perspective. I don't remember much about HDU at all, but I was apparently extremely chatty LOL. I know it meant a lot to me to find out which junior doctor had been in charge of my emergency admission because she is the one who sent me for a CT scan and thank goodness! My daughter and I went to see her with chocolates and it was lovely to be able to say "look at me, I'm fine thanks to you". As a medical secretary in a hospital I'm only too aware that most people complain about their care so it was lovely to say thank you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anya Posted October 7, 2010 Share Posted October 7, 2010 Welcome Kath and well done for contacting us! I too as a trained nurse have seen both sides now. My deeply embarrassing moments (in HDU) were in thinking my consultant was the cleaner and, more hideous, each time I was given a bed bath!! Often apologising profusely and muttering I would do the same for them! I wasn’t a very good patient lets just say. Indeed, again, thank you for reminding us that we are ‘survivors!’ & keep up the good work! Love, Anya x Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Angela1 Posted October 8, 2010 Share Posted October 8, 2010 Welcome Kath, Its people like you, doctors and consultants who deserve all the recognition for all the hard work you do. In the hospital the nurses took great care of my partner Mark and every single one of them have my eternal gratitude. Best Wishes Angela xx Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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