I was moved to the ICU by the surgeon’s orders. The bed was in a wide room that had a view of a wrought iron door and the city street behind it. If you looked through the window, you could see a bit of blue sky. The next morning the surgeon came to visit. He told Eric and me about brain hemangiomas – about bleeding dangers, their consequences, and the need for removal. I thought of the days to come and was very scared. What if…? My cousin relayed the advice she’d been given: to think about a satisfying thing I would do after the surgery was over. That way, the fear would vanish. I decided I would think of Nathan and myself dancing at his bar-mitzvah celebration. My older brother and my mother flew to the US to be there for the surgery.
The day arrived. The anesthesiologist explained in great detail what the anesthetic she would give me would do. They rolled me in a stretcher into the operation room. They put a mask on me, and a gas started to come out. I inhaled it while envisioning Nathan and myself dancing in a large ballroom, and fell asleep.
I was moved to the ICU by the surgeon’s orders. The bed was in a wide room that had a view of a wrought iron door and the city street behind it. If you looked through the window, you could see a bit of blue sky. The next morning the surgeon came to visit. He told Eric and me about brain hemangiomas – about bleeding dangers, their consequences, and the need for removal. I thought of the days to come and was very scared. What if…? My cousin relayed the advice she’d been given: to think about a satisfying thing I would do after the surgery was over. That way, the fear would vanish. I decided I would think of Nathan and myself dancing at his bar-mitzvah celebration. My older brother and my mother flew to the US to be there for the surgery.
The day arrived. The anesthesiologist explained in great detail what the anesthetic she would give me would do. They rolled me in a stretcher into the operation room. They put a mask on me, and a gas started to come out. I inhaled it while envisioning Nathan and myself dancing in a large ballroom, and fell asleep.