what to make of that statement, but she figured it was going to be a bad
situation when she saw her mom by the looks on this nurses face.
“She’s in room
501,” the nurse said. “It’s right down the hall and make a left.”
“Thanks,” Rachel
said, as she started in that direction.
Nobody told her
what to expect when she saw her mother for the first time and nobody could have
prepared her for what she saw as she entered room 501. Her mom lay there, under
the white hospital sheets with her head wrapped in bandages and air tubes
coming out of her nose and mouth. There were wires hooked up to her body that
poked out of the sheets and hooked up to loud beeping monitors that sat at the
side of her bed.
Rachel walked in
slowly and quietly towards her mom’s bedside. She peeked at her over the
railing of the bed and noticed that her eyes were taped shut, too. It looked to
her as if her mom were dying. A tear fell from her eyes and rolled down her
cheek, and landed on the white sheet that covered her mom. She reached under
the covers and grabbed her mom’s hand, which had an IV coming out of her wrist.
She clutched onto it, happily feeling the warmth of her body.
BEEP BEEP BEEP
Her eyes quickly
focused on the monitor next to her bed as it started to beep louder and more
frequently. The line that ran across the screen was jumping up and down in an
erratic rhythm. The noises and the whole situation made her heart race and she
began to feel panicked. Was her mom dying? Was her heart stopping?
She watched as
two nurses came running into her room to examine her. They opened her eyes and
shined a flashlight in both of them watching her pupils expand and contract and
then checked each of her heart monitors to make sure they were tightly secured
to the round patches stuck to her skin.
“Is she OK?”
Rachel asked, in fear.
“Shh,” one nurse said.
“We’re checking that out now.”
“She’s never done
this before,” the other nurse said. “It’s almost as if she’s waking up?”
“Is she OK?
Please say she’s OK and that’s she not dying!” Rachel begged.
“Doctor! Doctor!”
the nurse yelled out of the room. “Hurry!”
Within seconds a
doctor came running in, wearing a white lab coat and scrubs.
“What’s going on
here?” he said, looking at the nurses.
“Look! Her heart
rate is plummeting, quick, get the AED,” the nurse yelled.
Rachel watched
in horror as the nurse ran out and ran back in with the machine to jump-start
her mom’s heart. The noise coming from the monitor was now a continuous loud
tone and the beeping had stopped. It reminded her of when people would flat
line in the movies, except this wasn’t a movie, this was real life and it was
her mother on the other end. It was all too much for her to watch so she ran
out of the room sobbing as she slunk down to the floor put her head in her lap.
She could still
her the commotion from inside the room as the nurses and doctor tried to revive
her. She couldn’t believe what was happening and she hoped it wasn’t her fault.
She hoped that she didn’t cause this. Perhaps her mom sensed that she was there
to see her and went into shock. She felt awful.
One of the nurses
came walking slowly out of the room and over towards her computer station.
“What happened?
Is she OK? Please tell me she’s alive!” Rachel asked in fear.
The nurse looked
over at her, smiled and then said, “She is OK. The doctor will tell you more.”
“Will she make
it?” Rachel asked.
“Why don’t you
wait to talk to the doctor? He will be out in a few minutes. They’re just
patching her up in there,” the nurse said.
“Please just tell
me. I can’t wait. Please!” Rachel yelled. “That’s my mother you’re talking about!”
“The doctor will
be right with you,” the nurse said, as she turned and walked away.
Rachel couldn’t
believe how cold this nurse was to her. She’d never experienced a situation
like this before and she never
situation when she saw her mom by the looks on this nurses face.
“She’s in room
501,” the nurse said. “It’s right down the hall and make a left.”
“Thanks,” Rachel
said, as she started in that direction.
Nobody told her
what to expect when she saw her mother for the first time and nobody could have
prepared her for what she saw as she entered room 501. Her mom lay there, under
the white hospital sheets with her head wrapped in bandages and air tubes
coming out of her nose and mouth. There were wires hooked up to her body that
poked out of the sheets and hooked up to loud beeping monitors that sat at the
side of her bed.
Rachel walked in
slowly and quietly towards her mom’s bedside. She peeked at her over the
railing of the bed and noticed that her eyes were taped shut, too. It looked to
her as if her mom were dying. A tear fell from her eyes and rolled down her
cheek, and landed on the white sheet that covered her mom. She reached under
the covers and grabbed her mom’s hand, which had an IV coming out of her wrist.
She clutched onto it, happily feeling the warmth of her body.
BEEP BEEP BEEP
Her eyes quickly
focused on the monitor next to her bed as it started to beep louder and more
frequently. The line that ran across the screen was jumping up and down in an
erratic rhythm. The noises and the whole situation made her heart race and she
began to feel panicked. Was her mom dying? Was her heart stopping?
She watched as
two nurses came running into her room to examine her. They opened her eyes and
shined a flashlight in both of them watching her pupils expand and contract and
then checked each of her heart monitors to make sure they were tightly secured
to the round patches stuck to her skin.
“Is she OK?”
Rachel asked, in fear.
“Shh,” one nurse said.
“We’re checking that out now.”
“She’s never done
this before,” the other nurse said. “It’s almost as if she’s waking up?”
“Is she OK?
Please say she’s OK and that’s she not dying!” Rachel begged.
“Doctor! Doctor!”
the nurse yelled out of the room. “Hurry!”
Within seconds a
doctor came running in, wearing a white lab coat and scrubs.
“What’s going on
here?” he said, looking at the nurses.
“Look! Her heart
rate is plummeting, quick, get the AED,” the nurse yelled.
Rachel watched
in horror as the nurse ran out and ran back in with the machine to jump-start
her mom’s heart. The noise coming from the monitor was now a continuous loud
tone and the beeping had stopped. It reminded her of when people would flat
line in the movies, except this wasn’t a movie, this was real life and it was
her mother on the other end. It was all too much for her to watch so she ran
out of the room sobbing as she slunk down to the floor put her head in her lap.
She could still
her the commotion from inside the room as the nurses and doctor tried to revive
her. She couldn’t believe what was happening and she hoped it wasn’t her fault.
She hoped that she didn’t cause this. Perhaps her mom sensed that she was there
to see her and went into shock. She felt awful.
One of the nurses
came walking slowly out of the room and over towards her computer station.
“What happened?
Is she OK? Please tell me she’s alive!” Rachel asked in fear.
The nurse looked
over at her, smiled and then said, “She is OK. The doctor will tell you more.”
“Will she make
it?” Rachel asked.
“Why don’t you
wait to talk to the doctor? He will be out in a few minutes. They’re just
patching her up in there,” the nurse said.
“Please just tell
me. I can’t wait. Please!” Rachel yelled. “That’s my mother you’re talking about!”
“The doctor will
be right with you,” the nurse said, as she turned and walked away.
Rachel couldn’t
believe how cold this nurse was to her. She’d never experienced a situation
like this before and she never
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