2010: UCLA Resnick Hospital
It was a slightly muggy day on my last day at UCLA Resnick Neuropsychiatric Hospital and I couldn't wait to start my new job at West Los Angeles Health Center as a general practice nurse as I long as I never had to work in the psychiatric unit again. It was heartbreaking to learn as much as I did and enough to make you unstable in some cases.
I was pulled out of my thoughts when one of the nurses handed me a file that had just been faxed in. "Prepare a room at once and some restraints plus a sedative. This is going to be a rough one" I instructed, reading over the file of our soon to be patient, Alex Walker Lowe. It disheartened me to learn she had lost her son when he was abducted and how her husband had found her in a dishelved state in the bathtub with her wrists slit.
Just then, the doors opened and some security guards were escorting a woman with blonde hair in. She was in nothing more than a hospital gown and a straitjacket over it. Behind them came a man with dark hair, gorgeous blue eyes, and I could tell he had not slept at all. The orderlies came out and helped take the woman to her room in the back.
Quickly, I finished her bracelet and handed it to a passing guard before I went to help finish the admitting process with the gentleman, I assumed to be her husband. "Come with me please sir" I offered kindly and led him back to my office, adding "Won't you please have a seat?"
I watched as he took a seat and I sat back behind my desk. I pulled up what I needed to on the computer and I could see that he regretted having to do this. "Mr. Lowe, are you alright" I asked.
"Would you call me John? I just don't like formality" he asked in reply.
"Of course John. Listen, I know this a deeply painful decision but you're doing what's best for her" I told him.
"I just hope she can get the help but there's more than what that file is telling you" he admits.
"Well, your son getting abducted is bad enough. What else is going on" I asked softly, turning away from the screen and looking at him.
"I don't think she ever truly loved me even when we married. When she became pregnant and gave birth to our son, she was more attentive to the baby to the point of obession. It was like I didn't exist. It got to the point, she never wanted to be in the same room as me. She never spoke to me again" he admitted.
"Oh John, I'm sorry" I whispered, trying to be supportive. I didn't know how that felt but I felt bad for him. No one deserved to be in that misery.
"Thank you nurse" he replied, trying to read my name badge.
"McKenna" I told him.
"Thank you Miss McKenna" he told me with a slight smile.
"I assure you John that all will be done to help your wife" I assured gently.
"You mean ex wife Miss McKenna. Alex and I were in the process of finalizing the divorce when this happened" John informed me. I nodded and we finished the admitting process as I typed in what he told me. At last, he got ready to leave and I could see inside that he was still broken. Sometimes what hurt me more than the patients was those that had to commit them. I had no clue what would come.