Hello from your District Nurse!

I cannot tell you how much I miss all of you. My daily routine usually started with walking through the crowded cafeteria during breakfast, and I miss seeing and hearing all of you. I miss listening to early jazz band practice, I miss seeing you in the office for ibuprofen, ice packs and daily medications. I miss going to your sporting events, stopping by Spartan Manufacturing just to see what you are creating, and most of all I miss the ambient presence of all of your energy, creativity, and curiosity.

I am staying busy, but it is a whole new kind of busy for me. Without all of you to care for in person, I am doing paperwork, emails, a few zoom meetings and phone calls every week, and connecting with public health and other school nurses around the state. We are all working hard to make choices that keep everyone safe, but we are also making plans for when we can all be together again.

I have been finding my anxiety has been high, but in very interesting ways. Even when my brain is not anxious, my body apparently is. I struggled with cluster migraines the first couple weeks we were all home, as well as blood pressure increases that made it necessary for me to take medicine to keep my blood pressure in a safe range. I found that I have calming activities that help, that also make me feel useful. I have done a lot of knitting and also started making masks for people who want them.

I realized part of the problem was that I felt guilty for not doing enough. I am a nurse. I should be helping! I realized that I felt guilty being safe at home, when my brother and sister nurses were exposing themselves daily to COVID-19 to support patients. It has taken time for me to realize that what I am doing is still helping. Staying home protects those people who have to work every day. Making masks helps, because not everyone had the right skills or tools to do that. Connecting with public health and other school nurses helps, because I am a party of the solution for the future. Staying safe at home helps because I can be ready to be there for each of you when we come back together.

I have been having fun with knitting (I am up to a sweater, two blankets, and a scarf so far completed), sewing (22 masks, and 12 more to go), repainting the garden gnome my grandmother gave me, and cooking a lot (chili, potato soup, pea soup, cookies, brownies, cinnamon rolls - all from scratch!). I started relearning to play the piano, and also started relearning Spanish. Hopefully I will actually have a conversational grasp this time! I am working with my church choir to put together a distance choir song via zoom and videos, and I am trying to convince my husband that it is time for us to replace our dog who died four years ago. No luck yet, but "hope springs eternal!"

Know that whatever you are doing, you can make a difference too. Encourage each other, stay safe at home, connect remotely, and believe that I have faith in all of you to come through this stronger than ever. If you feel anxious or fearful don't keep that to yourself. Find someone to talk to, and support each other. I think of all of you as "my kids." I love you, I believe in you, and I know that we will all get through this together.