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When we go through traumatic events, our brain can shut out feelings and thoughts as a way to protect us from emotional or physical damage. This can make people go numb in stressful situations, so our bodies have time to figure out the best course of survival. Healthcare workers are frequently exposed to traumatic experiences, so when they were asked what event made them go permanently numb, they shared many devastating stories. Scroll down to find them below, and don’t forget to share similar ones if you have any.

#1

Hand holding a disposable face mask outdoors symbolizing challenges faced by healthcare workers during critical moments. Putting multiple people in body bags each shift one weekend as a Covid nurse and then having my own family tell me Covid wasn’t real in the days after.

sarah , Alin Luna Report

Lil Nitemare
Community Member
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5 months ago

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    #2

    Healthcare worker in white coat talking to a male patient lying in hospital bed during morning rounds. Having to tell my patient we had no ventilators left during Covid so he really had to be strong and focus on his breathing all night just to stay alive. He did.

    allililin , DC Studio Report

    #3

    “Her Toes Fell Off Into My Hand”: 50 Moments That Changed Healthcare Workers Forever Carrying a stillborn infant to the morgue in my arms so that her mother did not have to see her on the cold morgue cart. This was against policy, it was night shift and I didn’t care. The look on her face and the pain in her voice asking me to carry her will stay with me forever.

    jen , amjadullah540 Report

    Nicole hought
    Community Member
    5 months ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    When my son died at 5 months old from SIDS, The coroner carried him out wrapped in his blanket. Like a sleeping baby. I died that day.

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    It’s not uncommon to dissociate or numb feelings when going through traumatic or stressful events. Even though it might provide temporary relief, coping this way with difficult emotions can have an unwanted, long-lasting impact. 

    Prolonged emotional numbness can lead to an inability to respond to positive situations and relationships, too. They appear detached and unfeeling and lack energy. Essentially, a person can’t feel anything anymore.

    #4

    Close-up of baby’s feet on a blanket, symbolizing emotional moments that changed healthcare workers forever. A mother holding her stillborn said “I wish I could sit here and stare at her until we both turn into dust.”

    Kelly , EyeEm Report

    #5

    I had a patient my age (23) with severe Chron’s disease in the ICU after surgery. He started bleeding more than 1L through the drainage. Called the emergency surgeons and while they arrived I held his hand while he told me “I’m very scared”. He was extremely pale and shaking. I went home after that shift, couldn’t sleep thinking about it, and the next day my coworker said “take a look at him”. He was intubated and sedated. He made it, and after a few days he woke up and thanked me for everything.

    Alice Neff Report

    Littlemiss
    Community Member
    Premium
    5 months ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Phew! A positive one🙂

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    #6

    Elderly couple sharing a tender moment indoors, highlighting compassionate care and emotional connection in healthcare workers' experiences. Holding a patient by his gait belt with another nurse so he could dance with his wife one last time. He passed that night. Her cries haunt me.

    elloitschristin , SHVETS production Report

    Roni Stone
    Community Member
    Premium
    5 months ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Thank you so much for giving them that moment. Somewhere in the universe, it will always be remembered.

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    However, without the help of professional guidance, emotional numbing can be hard to overcome. Mental health professionals provide various treatments that can help with accepting the inner feelings and focusing one’s attention on living a meaningful life. 

    That said, there are several lifestyle changes that doctors or therapists can recommend to help relieve the symptoms of emotional numbness.

    #7

    “Her Toes Fell Off Into My Hand”: 50 Moments That Changed Healthcare Workers Forever Sitting with a 5 yo who was there for a su*cide attempt and his mom just dropped him off and gave his info and left. He than ran out the ER into oncoming traffic and when I caught him, he grabbed onto me and said “I just want my mommy to love me”.

    KJ🌧 , Getty Images Report

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    #8

    “Her Toes Fell Off Into My Hand”: 50 Moments That Changed Healthcare Workers Forever The fire department holding a motorcyclists brain in his head with a towel while I checked all over the patient for a pulse, watching his dead eyes hoping he blinks. Looking for maybe a bubble in the blood pouring out of his mouth. Attempting CPR and feeling every bone crush that I had to look away. Standing up covered in blood, blood soaked through my pants, socks, shirt. And then had to work the rest of my shift covered in his blood. I still see his eyes clear as day in my mind. I would count compressions in my head for months over and over, reminding myself I did them at the right pace. This all happened on a major highway while drivers video recorded me yelling at a lifeless man to blink. We covered him with a sheet, and had to go to the next call. I wish people saw EMS from our point of view. We don’t have doctors on scene. There’s two of us. We call the shots. And we pray to god the shots are correct. That’s all. Traumatic as hell.

    Jessica , Mathurin NAPOLY / matnapo Report

    grotesqueer
    Community Member
    5 months ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Recording that is so indescribably disgusting. How can people be so disrespectful??

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    #9

    Patient lying in hospital bed receiving oxygen support, depicting moments that changed healthcare workers forever. Having a cancer patient's wife sob in my arms after her husband told the Dr he was tired of fighting and wanted to go home on hospice, sit on the porch, listen to the birds, and drink coffee with his wife.

    lala 🦕 , Tima Miroshnichenko Report

    Roni Stone
    Community Member
    Premium
    5 months ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Such simple wishes and such a momentous moment. Life isn't about winning an award; life is about coffee with one's spouse while the birds are singing.

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    The first one is learning to reach out to your friends and family for support when you need it. Trusted persons in your life can provide a safe space to express your emotions. Another great thing to do is to focus on improving your physical health. Getting plenty of exercise and rest is important, as it makes your body more equipped to face probable stressors.

    #10

    Healthcare worker in blue scrubs sitting in a hallway, covering her face, overwhelmed by a moment that changed healthcare forever. Sane exam on a 8-month-old baby…I never went home and cried so much. I held my daughter when I got home.

    mintykxo , syda_productions Report

    Tabitha
    Community Member
    5 months ago (edited) Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    We have had some reported incidents where the family of the child went after the p**o and beat the everlovin’ s**t out of him—-and I say him, because, statistically speaking, it’s a man doing these vile things way more often than a woman. Yes, there are women just like that, but their numbers are minuscule in comparison. Vigilante justice is not right, academically, but on an emotional level, it’s something I would have great difficulty not doing myself if it was my kid, and I simply cannot place any blame on a parent who reacts in that highly understandable and totally natural and visceral way. Any normal human being would have that exact same impulse. I know for d**n sure that I am not alone in that sentiment.

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    #11

    “Her Toes Fell Off Into My Hand”: 50 Moments That Changed Healthcare Workers Forever Praying with an older couple before surgery to go well, she didn’t make it. Watching him leave alone with his cane and hat in hand.

    Lilnugget , Joshua Hoehne Report

    Tabitha
    Community Member
    5 months ago (edited) Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    At least they tried, and didn’t refuse to do it, saying it wasn’t worth trying because she was old. Had it been successful, she could’ve recovered and had several extra years. But sometimes it’s just your time to go, and nothing you or anyone can do will change that. But oh the poor husband. As my husband and I grow older, that very scenario stays in the back of my mind, and I don’t look forward to it happening, regardless of which one of us is the one to outlive the other (I think I will be the one to outlive my husband, because of genetics, habits, and stuff he did when he was younger, but then again, I could get hit by a bus tomorrow, so…).

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    #12

    “Her Toes Fell Off Into My Hand”: 50 Moments That Changed Healthcare Workers Forever I sat with a postpartum mom after she told me she was planning on shooting herself that night. I sat with her while she sobbed and we admitted her that day. I think about her and what would’ve happened if she hadn’t spoken up that day. I held her and we cried together.

    Jazmin M , EyeEm Report

    Minimizing stress is an additional coping strategy that can help minimize emotional numbness. This means avoiding overcrowded schedules and instead finding time to do things you enjoy. Lastly, relaxing breathing and physical exercises can increase emotional strength and to manage stressful experiences, minimizing the need to resort to emotional numbing. 

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    #13

    A distressed woman crying indoors, capturing the emotional impact on healthcare workers during unforgettable moments. During an honor walk hearing the scream of a mother and watching her fall to her knees as her teenage son was being wheeled down to the OR to be an organ donor.

    caradena , Blake Cheek Report

    Roni Stone
    Community Member
    Premium
    5 months ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Cannot imagine the pain.

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    #14

    “Her Toes Fell Off Into My Hand”: 50 Moments That Changed Healthcare Workers Forever The amount of children and young people that die because they have no health insurance while we keep people in nursing homes that have no mind body or soul left.

    @fkditup , A. C. Report

    The Cute Cat
    Community Member
    5 months ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    It is time to choose politician that support universal health care. That is not expensive.. Many developing country have it

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    #15

    “Her Toes Fell Off Into My Hand”: 50 Moments That Changed Healthcare Workers Forever When an old lady was sick and i hugged her and she started crying and said all she wants is her mommy.

    slaydieslaylor , Imad Alassiry Report

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    #16

    Healthcare worker sitting on floor, head in hands, holding stethoscope, overwhelmed and exhausted by medical challenges. Doing compressions on a man still in his wedding tuxedo while his brand new wife stood outside the room still in her dress. They were t-boned leaving their wedding, he didn’t make it.

    Lisa , wirestock Report

    #17

    Healthcare worker carrying a tray with hospital meal including pasta, fruit, dessert, and water in a patient room setting. My pedi psych patient asking me “Is this what it’s like to have a mom?” When I cut his food up for him.

    Syd , rawpixel.com Report

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    #18

    Woman with long blonde hair sitting on a couch, covering her face with her hands, reflecting emotional healthcare worker moments. Hearing the screams of a mom bc her dad gave her daughter a std .. she was 6.. having to hold a mom while she watched her son almost die in her arms due to gun violence .. I can keep going …

    5 ⭐️ , EyeEm Report

    Nikole
    Community Member
    5 months ago

    This comment has been deleted.

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    #19

    Healthcare worker holding tiny baby feet gently in hand, symbolizing impactful moments in healthcare care. SANE exam on a newborn. I left.

    GreatBarrierQueef , wirestock Report

    Littlemiss
    Community Member
    Premium
    5 months ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Omfg on a newborn? I hope the person responsible is buried in someone's back yard. It's a s*xual as*sault examination for those wondering.

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    #20

    Empty hospital bed with medical equipment and heart monitor illustrating moments that changed healthcare workers forever. Seeing a man in his 30s watch outside the glass door as his wife passed away during COVID days after she birthed their baby who also didn’t make it.

    Lexie , DC Studio Report

    #21

    “Her Toes Fell Off Into My Hand”: 50 Moments That Changed Healthcare Workers Forever Caring for a baby in the same NICU bed my daughter died in. They had the same diagnosis. The baby’s last name was my daughter’s first name.

    shasharn143 , KamranAydinov Report

    Kali Chaos
    Community Member
    5 months ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Whoa. I am so sorry. But that kinda seems like your daughter letting you know she's still around you.

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    #22

    Worried woman sitting indoors looking at her phone, reflecting on emotional moments healthcare workers face. Losing my 8 week old daughter and my boss calling me the next day asking when I'd be returning to work, on the pediatric floor…

    Cassie , dimaberlin Report

    #23

    Healthcare worker discussing brain scans with a patient in a hospital room, highlighting impactful moments in healthcare. 18 yr old, engaged, with brain cancer signing on to hospice. Our chaplain married her and her fiance after she held on for 4 days. She passed right after.

    Cheyenne Sejour , Tima Miroshnichenko Report

    The Cute Cat
    Community Member
    5 months ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    At least she found some joy on her last days.. Still a tragic

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    #24

    Woman patient lying in hospital bed with oxygen tube, symbolizing moments that changed healthcare workers forever. Being a nurse in ICU. Caring for a 25 yo woman who got H1N1 and was on life support for over a month. Pressors, vent, the whole 9. Family was never there but wouldn’t take her off life support. I took her sock off and her toes fell off into my hand. She was rotting. Had to call ethics committee.

    Stefsmith42 , freepik Report

    Lady Eowyn
    Community Member
    5 months ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    We need to learn to accept that there is a point beyond which life support is doing nothing for the patient, just the family. Let Them Go. Do the humane thing.

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    #25

    Healthcare worker gently holding a newborn baby dressed in yellow, highlighting moments that changed healthcare forever. Doing CPR on two babies who where siblings.. while the shooter was alive and a few rooms down.. he lived. They didn’t.

    Cristal Floran , freepik Report

    SheamusFanFrom1987
    Community Member
    5 months ago (edited) Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Sorry not sorry, but someone better call the 5-0 on me because I'd be administering a lethal dose of slow death on a certain child shooter >:-(

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    #26

    Person in a red coat overlooking a river, reflecting on moments that changed healthcare workers forever. Doing compressions on someone my age who was assaulted beyond the point of recognition by her ab**er. Haven’t really been the same since that call.

    jewelsredman , EyeEm Report

    #27

    My favorite patient; I work in memory care and she knew EVERYTHING about me. I layed in bed with her during her final days. She told me she’ll always be rooting and watching over me. She told me to stay on earth for as long as I can.

    Karina G Report

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    #28

    Healthcare worker sitting on a bench, covering face with hands, showing emotional struggle and impact on healthcare workers. The scream of a father finding out his 3yo son was ran over and didn’t make it…

    laurenh____ , Masjid MABA Report

    #29

    Young child resting on a beige couch with a blanket, illustrating moments that changed healthcare workers forever. Doing post mortem care on a young mom while her toddler was asleep in the cot set up beside the bed.

    Julia , zhenzhong liu Report

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    #30

    I once saw a NICU nurse rocking a dead baby back and forth in her arms as if it were alive. Did that all the way to the morgue.

    Grizzly Adams Report

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    #31

    Healthcare worker in blue scrubs sitting in a hospital corridor, looking stressed and overwhelmed after a difficult moment. Post mortem SANE exam on a 16 yo.

    Katie b , pressmaster Report

    #32

    i work in a pharmacy and watching elders have to leave a medication they need because it’s $2k+ makes me feel the lump in my throat everytime.

    collette Report

    #33

    I sat with a patient who told me “I don’t know if my baby is my dad's or step dad's.”

    Odgreana 🥸 Report

    Littlemiss
    Community Member
    Premium
    5 months ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Special place in hell for those guys, that poor girl deserves better than them.

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    #34

    Healthcare worker video chatting on laptop, sharing moments that changed healthcare workers forever. I had a patient that wasn’t doing great after a stroke but he said he was saving up his strength to watch his granddaughters wedding on zoom… he had so much energy and then an hour before the wedding he died and I sobbed so hard.

    carissascosmos , cottonbro studio Report

    Snazzy Smurf
    Community Member
    5 months ago (edited) Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Bless his soul. He gave it his best.

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    #35

    When a family had to put secret cameras in their mother’s room at an assisted living facility bc of suspicion that the staff was ab**ing her…….and unfortunately they were. She had bruising all over her body.

    Alyssa Valderrama Report

    BrownEyedPanda
    Community Member
    5 months ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    I've seen way too many of these stories on YouTube and the news. The only time anything is done about it is when the story goes viral. Suddenly, all of that "lack of funds" and "staff shortage" no longer exists. Same thing happens regarding child abuse and teacher misconduct.

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    #36

    Elderly man on crutches looking out a window, reflecting a moment that changed healthcare workers forever. Seeing a man in his 80s being dropped off (old folks home) and his daughter saying she'd pick him up later for his grandbaby's soccer game. He sat by a windows waiting everyday. They never even came to get his belongings when he passed.

    🦇 biz 🎃 nastyyy 🕷 , freepik Report

    Littlemiss
    Community Member
    Premium
    5 months ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    May those family members have the exact same fate.

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    #37

    Close-up of hands holding a Valentine’s card with otter illustrations, symbolizing heartfelt moments for healthcare workers. My patient asked me for a pen and paper to make his wife a Valentine’s day card. He made the card and then coded that night.

    Sam , cottonbro studio Report

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    #38

    Young woman in hospital bed visibly upset, highlighting emotional moments that changed healthcare workers forever. The screams of a mom who came in expecting to deliver a healthy baby and found out it was stillborn.

    Abi , EyeEm Report

    Partypants
    Community Member
    5 months ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    This happened to my cousin, the umbilical cord had strangled her baby girl, it was horrific and heartbreaking. Not sure you can ever get over that.

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    #39

    “Her Toes Fell Off Into My Hand”: 50 Moments That Changed Healthcare Workers Forever Trying to draw blood an 8 month old neglected baby that weighed the same as my baby at 2 months. (11lbs, he couldn’t even hold up his head).

    emmcrawford , Aditya Romansa Report

    Tabitha
    Community Member
    5 months ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    You know, if you don’t want them, don’t have them (yes, I know in some places that’s not possible). If you have to have them, then out them up for adoption. Please. There are people out there, good people who will be good parents, who would be overjoyed to love and raise your baby and give them a wonderful life. Don’t just have them and abuse and/or neglect them to death. FFS.

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    #40

    Healthcare worker wearing a mask, holding IV stand, looking out hospital window in a clinical setting with natural light. Holding the hand of a 16y.o being put to sleep for surgery to take out his voice box(cancer) and his last words being “please make sure I wake up.”

    Michaela , freepik Report

    #41

    Damaged white car involved in a crash, illustrating moments that changed healthcare workers forever in emergency response. I had a 19 y/o patient that got in a car accident. He’s brain dead but his parents have been keeping him ventilated for almost 2 years now.

    Amber , Josh Sonnenberg Report

    Lil Nitemare
    Community Member
    Premium
    5 months ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    My sister had a patient that had been stuck by a drunk driver as she crossed the street to her highschool prom. She was 17 at the time, and was 23 when she became my sister's patient. Brain dead. Father wouldn't let her go. He visited everyday so there's that, but he was just unable to accept she was gone. We both got living wills after that.

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    #42

    “Her Toes Fell Off Into My Hand”: 50 Moments That Changed Healthcare Workers Forever Compressions on a man who was vomiting his own stool who told me right before he coded to tell his family to sell his clothes for rent money that month.

    Ace the meatball , engin akyurt Report

    Roni Stone
    Community Member
    Premium
    5 months ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    So many horrible memories this summons for me.

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    #43

    Little baby not even 1. Back in forth between parents losing custody. Chronically sick w/ heart condition. Picked that baby up she didn’t want to let me go. She just needed to be held. I think about her everyday I hope she is loved.

    Brooke Julbert Report

    #44

    Hearing a grown man cry and scream as he’s getting brought down to surgery saying that all he wants is his babies back after getting into a car accident and was the only one that survived.

    andrea Report

    #45

    A missing female patient dumped on the side of the road after days of the unthinkable. She was badly injured and had been Sa’d and given unk substances. She was altered and thought I was her best friend. Kept eye contact with me the entire ride. Pleaded me to help her. She screamed for me as I left her in the trauma room. Thought her bff was ditching her. I still wish I could’ve stayed for her.

    Brucecait✨ Report

    CatD
    Community Member
    5 months ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    They should have let the nurse stay longer.

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    #46

    CNA for 7 years, ED RN for 2, thought i had been numb…i didn’t know what numb was until i drove up on my little brothers wreck and just screaming at everyone for not doing anything…while he had a fence post through his heart.

    Winter Blake Collins Report

    SheamusFanFrom1987
    Community Member
    5 months ago (edited) Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    D*a*m*n, condolences doesn't seem sufficient enough... May he Rest In Peace T_T

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    #47

    I’m a paramedic. It was watching my partner die.

    Majestic Meimo Report

    #48

    I discharged a patient with no previous psych hx who came in for anxiety. No SI/HI/AVH just really bad trauma but good support system. Family had no concerns. She k**led herself the next morning. I will live with the guilt of not being able to identify someone who truly needed saved for the rest of my life.

    dysthymicdom Report

    The Other Guest
    Community Member
    5 months ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Had to look up the abbreviations. Hx is history; SI/HI/AVH is suic‍id‍al ideation, ho‍mi‍cidal ideation, & auditory/visual hallucinations.

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    #49

    Doing compressions on a 3 weeks old baby and holding them until the coroner arrived since no family was allowed back due to suspected neglect/abuse.

    JaimieRN Report

    Pyla
    Community Member
    5 months ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    These k**l me. Nothing seems to change

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    #50

    A 10 week old with SDH, SAH, terrible case of shaken baby syndrome, apparently was found in between the wall and his crib and was severely malnourished.

    𝖕𝖗𝖎𝖓𝖈𝖊𝖘𝖆 ★ Report

    Kiss Army
    Community Member
    Premium
    5 months ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    SDH commonly refers to a subdural hematoma, which is a type of bleeding in the brain. / SAH stands for subarachnoid hemorrhage, a serious medical condition where bleeding occurs in the space between the brain and the surrounding tissue

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    #51

    Having a patient dying told me “don’t leave. sit with me and hold my hand” while she took her last breaths. She had dementia and thought I was her daughter.

    emma sue💛 Report

    Roni Stone
    Community Member
    Premium
    5 months ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    And for those few moments, you were her daughter.

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    #52

    memorial day weekend 2022. 3 kids died in our ED. Srowning, unexplained and a homicide. The homicide was 7 weeks old, he died alone. His father, who was also the grandfather k**led him.

    Laura Marie Report

    Oskar vanZandt
    Community Member
    5 months ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Another monster who deserves immediate eradication...

    #53

    Saying goodbye to my son in the hospital i had worked 6 years at. Helped save so many lives at that hospital yet i couldn’t save my baby.

    Haley Acuña Drerup Report

    Pandasizing World Peace
    Community Member
    Premium
    5 months ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    That had to be so hard. I'm so sorry!

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    #54

    Healthcare worker in blue scrubs and mask putting on gloves in a clinical setting focused on patient care. Being an oncology nurse. That’s it, that’s all.

    Brishaunna Lewis , rawpixel.com Report

    kzys59pcrp
    Community Member
    5 months ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    They were some of the most upbeat nurses I have ever met. Every time I went in for chemo they were so welcoming. When I went in for a check up months after finishing chemo they were so excited to see me. They admired my hair growth and said I was looking so good. Lovely people

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    #55

    Teaching a mom how to dry up her milk supply after delivering her baby stillborn. Broke me.

    TheRealPearceFamily Report

    RomanceRadish
    Community Member
    5 months ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    This is so sad. Becoming engorged while Llactating is horrible on its own, but would be unimaginably cruel if the baby was no longer alive.

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    #56

    A boy with a GSW due to being caught in a cross fire, heading to his high school graduation- grabbed my arm and told me, “please don’t let me die.” He had passed shortly after..

    xcash.t Report

    #57

    Holding an iPad for a family to say goodbye during the peak of Covid. That’s when I knew this career was changed forever.

    sydney_schreier Report

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    #58

    Taking care of a premature baby the day he was born doing cute footprints for his family. Only less than a month later doing compressions on him and having to do footprints again after he passed.

    Emma Report

    #59

    A mother bringing in her baby that had been gone for a few days already, she was on the influence when she came and feel to her knees asking someone to do CPR but the baby was cold and presumed over 3 days gone :(

    val🌸🌸 Report

    PeepPeep the duck
    Community Member
    5 months ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    This just reminds me of that horrid scene in trainspotting.

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    #60

    He couldn’t breathe. I held my patients hand and began lowering him down to prepare for emergency intuabtion during COVID. I will never forget his huge, blue, teary eyes staring right into my soul. The head of his bed was lowered flat, but he sat upright holding my hand, our eyes locked. We said nothing, everyone around us was frantically preparing. His breathing was labored, he was struggling, but he never looked away. When it was time, the doctor asked if the patient was ready. He gave me a single nod of affirmation, and said “please don’t let me die.” We stayed locked in until the sedation kicked in, and he finally surrendered. The intubation was successful, but he died days later, only a month before his wedding. I still lose sleep over him. I feel like I failed him, even though I didn’t. But he chose me in that room, and we made a pact. Thank you for letting me write this.

    Taylor K Report

    Colleen Glim
    Community Member
    5 months ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Covid sucked. And Covid deniers need to go die in a hole. So many people died, a lot of them needlessly, because people didn’t believe it was real

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    #61

    As a healthcare worker of 16 years nothing has numbed me more than coming home after a 12 hour shift and finding my dad had passed and was cold.

    Keri Stewart Report

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    #62

    Idk about numb, but when I thought I had been through enough..A child came in torn up by dogs head to toe. EMS, nursing staff, doctors, just everyone.. all were shaken up pretty bad. I think that stuck with everyone for a while.

    RunningAarons Report

    Pandasizing World Peace
    Community Member
    Premium
    5 months ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    I will never trust small children alone with dogs. Never.

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    #63

    Husband and wife were on my unit both with Covid. I helped them FaceTime their kids for them and each other not knowing if both or either would make it. They never got to say goodbye to each other. Wife passed shortly after this. A year later the husband got admitted again and remembered me. He told his kids who I was and they all hugged me sobbing and thanking me for caring for their parents. I learned later he passed after that admission.

    Mel Report

    #64

    An old man asking for a hug after family decided to put his wife on hospice “she’s all i have left.”

    isabel Report

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    #65

    Literally my favourite resident dying because of a broken heart a week after Christmas because her son died I didn’t even get to see her before hand and I didn’t even get to go to the funeral because there was none .. she had no other family just her son .. I was so enraged for her nobody deserves that..

    cpazsaxo Report

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    #66

    Delivering a stillborn baby on the floor of triage while i myself was 35 weeks pregnant.

    Kayys3 Report

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    #67

    Coding my best friend while i was on shift in the ED. He died.

    stewshe Report

    #68

    A client of mine who had cancer, finally beat it, but not even two weeks into remission passing away from the flu and pneumonia. Not even two weeks of being cancer free. I always think of them.

    LeShawna Slater Report

    #69

    Having a pediatric cancer patient pass away from the secondary cancer she got from the radiation they used to cure her initial cancer. She was 14.

    Sara Lynn Paul Report

    Colleen Glim
    Community Member
    5 months ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    They tell you about that risk when you start radiation treatments. It’s not common but sometimes the cure is worse than the cause

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    #70

    Waiting for fire department to arrive to the scene of a multi-car collision. I can still hear the woman screaming from the car engulfed in flames. The silence after still haunts me.

    Spartan 215 Report

    Judy Reynolds
    Community Member
    5 months ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    I've heard that's similar to what the survivors from the Titanic remember.

    #71

    Seeing a dementia patient look into a mirror and say “I feel 19 but I look in the mirror and see this old lady looking at me”

    Cjay Solis Report

    AnnaB
    Community Member
    Premium
    5 months ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Not to make light of the situation, but I do that, too.

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    #72

    A toddler pool drowning. Taking care of the mother a week later and having her committed; A few weeks after that, trying to resuscitate her post self inflicted gun shot. She had other school-aged children - all whom watched their sibling and parent die traumatic deaths.

    Allyssa Silvia Report

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    #73

    A wife holding her husbands face saying “oh sweetie you weren’t supposed to go first.”

    si<3 Report

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    #74

    Working a code for a mom 5 days postpartum and seeing dad holding that tiny baby thinking this child might grow up without their mom.

    Heather Report

    #75

    Sleeping in my favorite residents chair on my only night off cause her family wasn’t there.. she died at 1:15am. I went home cried. Changed and went to work by 6am.

    Mackenzie🤍 Report

    Greymom
    Community Member
    5 months ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Thank you for being there for her. It mattered. 😢

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    #76

    Doing compressions on a man who unalived his whole family, and now we had to save him.

    TheLisaRayRay Report

    Littlemiss
    Community Member
    Premium
    5 months ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Sadly its illegal not to just says oops and let him die.

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    #77

    Doing compressions on my mom on the side of the road and realizing that all of the education meant nothing without access to resources.

    Dawn Report

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    #78

    We had called the pt’s parents to let them know if they wanted to say goodbye they needed to come to the hospital & his parents missed him by 5 minutes.

    ellie s Report

    Deta Rossiter
    Community Member
    5 months ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    i missed my mother in law by 1 minute. literally 60 seconds.

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    #79

    A dad and his daughter sitting outside the mom’s hospital room who had just unexpectedly passed. Janitor cleaned it up and they had someone else in there within maybe hour? He looked at us and said “things move fast around here huh”.

    Daniluvzeva Report

    Jasmijn
    Community Member
    5 months ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    It has to be done - sick people who still have a chance need that bed.

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    #80

    Seeing a mother not care or even cry that her 8 y/o coded and died because she overdosed that baby on meds to make her sleep…

    Taylor Report

    MaryHadaLittleLamb
    Community Member
    5 months ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    I hope she got jail time for that. A lot of jail time.

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    #81

    Seeing my 16yo daughter’s best friend’s twisted and mangled body from drinking and driving.

    Kristen🦋 Report

    Colleen Glim
    Community Member
    5 months ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Why do people still do this? Drunk driving kills. Don’t care if you’ve only had one. Just don’t. It’s not that hard to understand

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    #82

    Seeing a young child scream and cry for their mom who we couldn’t bring back.

    Sydney🤩 Report

    #83

    Have a 11yr coming in for her wellness visit and having some knee pain. Mom brushed it off as growing pains….turns out it was cancer.

    Jordanpaige Report

    talliloo
    Community Member
    5 months ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    this kind of hit close to home although it wasn't cancer. remember telling my mom on and off while growing up of pain i would have in my body. i was also known as the family klutz because i would break or green fracture bones from stupid accidents that would normally just leave a bruise on someone else. it wasn't until i was in my late 30s i finally was diagnosed with a brittle bone disease that even confuses the doctors because it doesn't fall into any specific catagory. doing research with the docs eventually found out it was a genetic thing. my siblings also have it in various degrees. never told my mom about it because i didn't want her to feel guilty for blaming it on 'growing pains'.

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    #84

    A husband telling me “I’m okay, I just didn’t think I was gonna lose her today” and carry her belongings out alone. Cried in the hallway for 20 minutes.

    hann maddox Report

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    #85

    Newlyweds with the wife who just got diagnosed with stage 4 metastatic pancreatic cancer. Husband refused to sleep the entire 3 nights in the ICU with us having to walk it through with him about hospice.

    Pags Report

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    #86

    A woman caked in blood from trying to save her fiance after an accident was in shock as I checked her for injuries and couldn't answer any questions. But the wail she let out when her mom walked in lives in my brain forever.

    Razzle Report

    #87

    Empty hospital bed with medical equipment in a dimly lit room, reflecting moments that changed healthcare workers forever. The death rattle changed me. Now I can’t unhear it when I do hear it.

    Kayleigh , freepik Report

    Littlemiss
    Community Member
    Premium
    5 months ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    It's definitely a sound you never forget. Heard it twice, never want to hear it again.

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    #88

    Watching a mom get cut and ripped open during a c-section when she wasn’t numb. Her screams haunt me.

    ashleyhd Report

    Bugg
    Community Member
    5 months ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Why would they not sedate or numb her?

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    #89

    Holding a random man’s hand as he took his last breath because his family didn’t want to come in and see him like that. Who knows what he did, but he didn’t go out alone.

    Kaela Sandoval Report

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    #90

    Putting a baby who only lived a few days in the cooler in the morgue. Shutting the door and walking away wrecked me.

    jordannicolem Report

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    #91

    Having to “code” the love of my life and he never woke up again and having to return to work like nothing happened.

    Sarah clark Report

    #92

    Watching a teen mom give birth and not wanting to hold or see the baby but instead asked when can she go back to school. I held her baby in my hands and cried. I told the baby that she was loved and that I loved her. My daughter was 6 months at that time.

    Tiare Zamora Michell Report

    Daune Tullina
    Community Member
    Premium
    5 months ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Give the teen mom the benefit of the doubt before yiu comment negatively. It sounds like she was in shock. The baby could have been the result of r**e or incest or a pregnancy she was forced to go through because of the stripping away of womens rights

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    #93

    Watching an adult son try to pull the teeth out of his mom's mouth when she died. He was convinced she was a body double and the hospital was faking her death.

    kate Report

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    #94

    Doing CPR on a baby, then having mom say "baby wake up, sissy and brother want to play, please WAAAKKEEE UPPPP!!" then the doctor pronounced him dead since we had been doing CPR for over an hour without success.

    Letacos Report

    #95

    Wrinkled elderly hands resting on a checkered skirt, symbolizing moments that changed healthcare workers forever. A female dementia patient who kept calling her husband the name of the man she cheated on him with for years.

    Emma Ford , Danie Franco Report

    PeepPeep the duck
    Community Member
    5 months ago (edited) Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    We had one close to this but reversed, she would always randomly bring up all these “encounters” and mention bill was away for work and “Paul” etc is coming over for a bit and we all needed to leave now 😂 but her husband bill and daughter said she’s never cheated or actually been like that as a person ever, which is believable from the lifestyle she had and th fact bill is a farmer and not a travelling man 😂 I just figured maybe she read romance novels a lot as a housewife

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    #96

    Doing compressions on a 19y/o that was shot while i was 19 and hearing the mother screaming to save her baby.

    🌾Rachel🌾 Report

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    #97

    Walking an actively psychotic pediatric inpatient psych patient over to the adult side the morning of her 18th birthday.

    4DogLife Report

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    #98

    Having a lady with dementia who is also blind ask me to pray with her because she was scared.

    Steph Report

    #99

    Coding patient and he didn’t make it. Later to find his wife had overdosed in his arms while viewing his body. Then proceeded to code her.

    sierra:) Report

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    #100

    A 20 yo female came in after being dr**ged and later on passed away, I’m a 20 yo female and often went to the same place where she got dr**ged.

    Melody Luke Report

    PeepPeep the duck
    Community Member
    5 months ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    It’s scary as, a guy recently tried it on me and I’m 37, it was around 2021 at a costume party in Perth and this guy insisted he got me a cocktail, he got it anyways despite the fact I don’t drink and had pineapple juice already (I’m a stoner). Kept going on about Princess Jasmine being his childhood crush, as that’s who I dressed as and I go look a lot like her. My boyfriend was blind drunk and had no idea this was happening and just picks up the cocktail and downs it, and I had a roofied 100kg man to get into my car. (I don’t know what d***s it was, but it was pretty bad).

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    #101

    A patient shot himself in the head while we were not even 15 yards away from him, and a nurse was in the room with him. Didn’t know he had the gun (obvi). We then had to quickly get over the shock so we could resuscitate him. Been numb to everything since, except loud noises.

    jennamartinez Report

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    #102

    First time doing CPR and feeling ribs break, and the death rattle.

    keira! Report

    Jasmijn
    Community Member
    5 months ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    If you break ribs, you’re doing it right, unfortunately

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    #103

    A patient on hospice held my hand an hour before she died and said “I’m gonna miss you”

    Keturah C. Report

    #104

    Peds code with a girl the same birthday as me. I helped parents get settled when they got there then went to help with compressions. I will always remember her name cuz I can always hear her mom screaming it. I always think of her when I blow out my candles.

    It’s me Report

    #105

    Seeing a 14yo boy 3x a week for wound care for stab wound for 3 months. Finally healed, 2 weeks later he was shot and k**led in a d**g deal, he told me he wanted to be a doctor when he grew up :(

    jennalkulla Report

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    #106

    Asked a woman what her typical eating habits were (I’m an RD). She immediately burst into tears. Her husband did all the cooking and he passed shortly before she got admitted.

    Grace B Report

    #107

    "Can you give us a pill so we can sleep forever" the man of the couple living at the elderly home said to me. His wife had severe alzheimers, I believe...

    FemaleVenom Report

    DC
    Community Member
    5 months ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Provide yourself with these way, way ahead of anything expectable! You do your relatives a favour if that stuff is sorted beforehand, and if they know your wishes, they might even help you out of life as easy as possible. Nothing wrong with that, but it's got to be, strictly, according to the patient's wishes. Sort how you steer clear of legal implications, too - what can somebody ask from a relative, what's allowed to deliver, what's not, the likes thereof.

    #108

    Watching a resident's dementia slowly get worse, you just watch them lose themselves.

    noemelyy Report

    Poppy
    Community Member
    5 months ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    I'm watching my mum go through this.

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    #109

    Honestly working as a dialysis tech and getting close with patients and then coming into work to an empty chair….. you never realize how hard an empty chair hits you until it’s your closest patient.

    Kelly Howard Report

    Mike F
    Community Member
    5 months ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    We transported a couple of dozen dialysis patients. It very sad when you roll up to their homes and emergency services are there trying to resuscitate them. It didn't often work.

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    #110

    Pronouncing someone’s dad dead on Christmas Day when they were supposed to go home that day.

    Plant Mom Report

    NotAThreat (he/him)
    Community Member
    5 months ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    my stepmother's mum died a day before Christmas when she (my step-mama)was only one, her dad is an amazing person.

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