— Chaitra (Volunteer Counsellor)
While on one of our weekly visits to a hospital in Bengaluru, we (a couple of ICS volunteers) happened to meet a young patient who had delivered her daughter just three months back and her caregiver husband. The couple was grappling with a number of concerns and were very happy to have someone to talk to.
She and her caregiver husband shared how the diagnosis and the subsequent treatment had taken a toll on their family ties and interpersonal relationships. The new mother was very much worried about her inability to nurse and hence the lack of bonding with her baby. A successful lawyer by profession lamented the adverse impact of her health condition on her professional growth. She also expressed her fears and doubts about being able to work with the same zest as earlier.
Inspite of all these challenges, it was certainly impressive to hear from both of them about their earnest attempts at holding things together, their courage and a strong desire to make things work!!!
They were curious to know if we had any suggestions for them. We conveyed our appreciation for their cheerfulness, willpower and ‘never-say-die’ attitude, and also suggested the book ‘You can heal your life’ by Louise Hay and her talks on YouTube. Both, the patient and her caregiver profusely thanked us and ICS for the interaction and suggestions.
Upon another visit to the same hospital after a few weeks, we were in for a lovely surprise!!! The caregiver husband walked up to us and expressed repeatedly his heartfelt gratitude for having suggested the book by Louise Hay on our earlier visit. He spoke about how the insights from the book have helped them in gaining fresh and healthier perspectives, which in turn enhanced their relationship across all dimensions.
Though we couldn’t interact with the patient as she was busy with her office work, it was a heartwarming and memorable sight for us to see the patient “deeply occupied and working enthusiastically EVEN while lying on the hospital bed”!
