I had OT at 10:00 today. It's like my Calgon Take Me Away moment, especially on a busy call week. Maria traded me an hour of morning frozens for an hour of afternoon frozens. I met a new girl, Susan - she is the Director of the Covid Unit at Baptist. WOW. She was fun and salty as hell. She injured her left hand on a car wreck and was getting therapy. She unapologetically had a take out container with French toast and bacon then set up her laptop and phone to work while she was getting therapy. She talked about Covid burnout and her history of working that belied her youthful appearance - she was director of a hospice in Dallas but worried she wasn't doing enough to help in the pandemic. She also helped process sexual assault victims at UAMS before she took this position. She managed to command the audience of OT with stories and work and entertain at the same time.
Me, not so much. I told Stephanie I needed a light session like Friday. Recovery is not a straight line, mentally or physically, and I'm moving backwards. I got nerve impingement moving my mouse this morning, which never happened before. I told her I was picking up a brain from a bottom shelf in the corner to show a potential employee yesterday and someone must have poured more formalin on it, because was heavy as shit and it hurt my rotator cuff like hell and I had to get Savanna's help.
Shelby loved touching the brain, though, as a lot of people do. I though it would be softer, she said, and I told her it is when it's fresh this is some research brain that has been sitting on the shelf for at least a decade. Abby Normal, it says on the bucket. So the real brain owner is a mystery. She put on the gloves I gave her and caressed the cerebellum and corpus callosum in awe. She's going to be a great addition to the team. Sharp as a freaking tack, and helped me a lot with IT issues when I was trying to show her cases on my new computer over lunch. I marveled, and handed her the mouse to take over. I've been putting computers together and learning code since preschool. An untapped gold mine, this girl. We meet on Thursday to assess the needs of our group and my input is we need to hire her ASAP.
Especially since IT is still a freaking mess - Jessica actually exploded yesterday in the gross room dealing with issues. She's kind of back together. I was supposed to meet them at Local Lime for drinks during happy hour this evening but it's been a day. Not just work. Jack texted the family gressage at 12:30 and told us there was a school shooting at Central and they were on school shooting protocol and lockdown. My blood pressure went into outer orbit and I was not able to concentrate until we had ascertained that 1) it came from outside the school - two bullets had hit a portable school unit and 2) the picture of the dead body with head pooling blood on social media was a fake. I had to take a beta blocker for the first time in a while. Nancy assured us on a school robocall message that they were working with the police and school security to find the shooter and find the person who made the fake picture. She actually sighed on the recording. This is the hardest day of my career. I'll say.
Stephanie asked if I was up for adjustment even though I was historically too guarded and I was game. She kept telling me to relax. She's got one cold hand on my inner shoulder while I am lying supine and one holding my hand sticking it in her underarm and moving it around holding it between her ample cleavage. Who can relax?? With this state? I was thinking I was glad I wasn't a guy I'd need to cover my pelvis with a pillow. Jessica tried to come talk to me and she said no, she's in time out she needs to relax. I closed my eyes and thought of a dream I had last night, one that I desperately tried to hold on to at 5:30 am when I woke up but sleep was done with me. Five minutes later she was like wow. You've never relaxed that much before. Great job. You ready for some rowing? Remember, bring it to the girls. Then you get rest and ice and electrodes. Good thing, I felt much better and it prepared me for stress to come.
Then as I was finishing up some hard cases Kimmie, Christy's other BFF, told me she was bringing her son Tristan to the ED - he'd had a work injury and fractured the tip of his finger so the clinic said he had to go to the ED. So I plugged in there and talked to all my docs and met the APN he was assigned to and made sure he was taken care of in a well and timely fashion. Our poor sons, I told Kim. Is this craziness ever going to end. I can't even. After I released my cases I told the secretaries I've got lots more work, but this day is done with me. I have to go home. Call week and it seems like Friday on a Tuesday. Enjoyed the last episode of Squid Games last night. Need to find and new show. Happy day, thank God none of the students got hurt. Much love, Elizabeth
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