the night of ingestion.

INGESTION PART ONE


Sweet kind 85 year old man walks in cute as can be. When asked to state his complaint he
says he thinks he swallowed his dentures. He said he went to bed and when he woke up his
teeth were missing and his throat was sore. After the initial shock of hearing the story
i sent him to xray to see if we can see his teeth. I'm thinking to myself " how the hell?"
but nonetheless, he went to xray. As we waited for the xray results we chatted. This man was so cute. He was kind and had a gentle demeanor. I asked him what medications he takes at home and he pulled out a crumpled old piece of paper from 1952. He broke my heart,so i took his list and went over to the computer and typed it up for him and cut it to wallet size.He was SO appreciative, it made my night. So....we wait for
the xray results and much to my surprise (sarcasm)...there were no dentures in his throat,
abdomen or intestines. All clear! I told him they were not in his body and you know what he said?

"I had a feeling I hadn't swallowed them, I think i know what happened to them."
"What do you think?" I asked.

"Well,my wife died 4 years ago and she was always playing pranks on me so I figure she probably stole them in the middle of the night and is laughing at me from up in heaven".
I died. I literally felt my heart open up and swallow this lovely man.
I told him I agreed and thought that this was her best prank yet. He winked at me ;)


INGESTION #2


to hate yourself so much that you'd swallow a handful of razor blades

i can't imagine.

to be screaming in pain at something you inflicted upon yourself.

That is a kind of hatred i can't wrap my mind around.

The ct scan literally showed 5 razor blades at various stages of digestion
just destroying her insides. The screams coming from the room resonated all night long and
we, here in the ER, are left to contemplate our own self confidence, self assurance and sense
of value. I know now, after seeing and hearing this patient, that I love and value myself and
that nothing would make me inflict that kind of harm on my body. Our bodies are so sacred. Why
must people torture and neglect them. Whether it be drugs or razor blades....there is no difference.
One day their bodies will shut down, and in those final moments, I know for a fact that they will
wish they had another chance to make the right decision. I know that because I see them here night
after night, dying right infront of me. They look at you with those wide eyes and your heart aches. You know they did it to themselves,but that doesn't change the outcome. Death is inevitable.

Life lesson of the night: love yourself enough to take care of your body, mind and spirit.
AND....always hide your dentures when you take them out, or the tooth fairy might just grab em ;)