Healing Hands
Caregivers’ Expressions on mental wellness
artist demographics
Read more about the Writers..
a house and a home: Vignettes in loss and memory
Abigail Jeyaraj (she/they)
Essay, 2024
The essay describes my emotions following the death of my father - though a welcome relief, as his addiction made it so that he was emotionally reliant on me - and how it felt to experience loss in flashes, themed around the house I grew up in and the phone. While losing someone you care for can be freeing, it is also very crushing, especially if the person was afflicted by addiction. I hope that in sharing my story, someone is able to connect their own experiences to mine.
I was a child of an alcoholic, and when his addiction had him mentally regress to being someone who needed to be cared for, I stepped up, as his daughter. I love writing about my experiences, in the hopes that it connects with someone who might need that connection.
recounts of patient encounters:
a brief series of 50 word poems
Amanda Davis (she/her/hers)
I was introduced to fifty word poems in a humanities workshop and the concept stuck with me
When I began my clinical rotations is when I realized how significant and impactful patient interactions can be both positive and negative ways.
As a way to both unpack those moments and remember the patients I began writing fifty word poems as reflections.
The poems are a tool for my mental health as a caretaker because they allow me to both sit with my emotions and release them The poems illustrate my mental health journey as a caretaker by acknowledging the challenging, sad, frustrating experiences that come with being a caretaker and sitting with those feelings. My poems effectively are my mental wellness.
I was a medical student. My writing is a creative outlet that allows me to explore the humanity in medicine and unpack difficult experiences.
canto
Elisa A. Garza (she/her/hers)
Poem, 2014
The poem "Canto" draws a parallel. As the caregiver attempts to calm her anxiety while listening to the breathing of a sick child, she recalls a peaceful memory with similar sounds. The intensity of caregiving allows only a brief respite for the caregiver, who must recharge mentally and physically in order to continue. Recalling a peaceful moment similar to the sound of the patient's breathing provides reassurance, and the rest and positive mental energy the caregiver needs to continue.
I have been a maternal caregiver to my children for 20 years. I am a poet with 2 published chapbooks and a forthcoming full length collection from Lamar University Literary Press.
Love is a bowl of angel hair pasta
Patricia Marie Guzman (She/Her)
Essay
My work is a short essay that was inspired by my mom's nightly routine of packing my lunch while I was rotating through my internal medicine clerkship. A simple but profound act of selflessness filled an otherwise challenging time in my life with joy and purpose. My work seeks to highlight the daunting and often overwhelming road towards becoming a clinician and how small acts of kindness can have a profound effect along the journey.
Medical student Medical humanities student, aspiring writer
buddy the turtle
Robert Beaujean
Poem
It is a story of love, companionship, compassion and caring.
It is all about being a truly caring caregiver. It shows that caring matters, that at times in our lives, we may need to care for others, and at other times, our fragility will require that someone else care for us. This is a circle of companionship and caring.
This is life. Please Be a Buddy to someone today.
I had the opportunity to care for my grandfather on a few occasions. I witnessed the fragility of the elderly, yet their resilience. I realized that my grandfather was in a vulnerable state, and that the time we spent together gave me a great lesson in respect and wisdom. Caregiving is not easy and should be done with love and compassion. I invite you to care for someone you LOVE. I consider myself an artist, because since the age of 5, I started to write and I discovered that writing is my passion. In another words, writing is my life.
constellation syndrome
Sophie Schott (she/hers)
Poem
My poem, "Constellation Syndrome," probes at the method and meaning of medicine, asking how listening might not only be an act of care, but also an act of love. It also explores how language can be used to broaden or close gaps in understanding that develop between caregivers and clinicians. Sophie L. Schott is a medical student, poet, and researcher at McGovern Medical School. Her writing probes at the multidimensional meaning of her academic pursuits and explores how the humanities might ameliorate human suffering while illuminating the humanizing power of connection, community, and caregiving.
I am a medical student. The experiences described in my poem depict how I am learning to care for my patients through the example of others. I am a poet, medical student, and researcher.