Ride in the back of the ambulance with Sherry Jones Mayo Share the innermost feelings of emergency services workers as they encounter trauma, tragedy, redemption, and even a little humor. Sherry Jones Mayo has been an Emergency Medical Technician, Emergerncy Room Nurse, and an on-scene critical incident debriefer for Hurricane Katrina. Most people who have observed or experienced physical, mental or emotional crisis have single perspectives. This book allows readers to stand on both sides of the gurney; it details a ...
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Ride in the back of the ambulance with Sherry Jones Mayo Share the innermost feelings of emergency services workers as they encounter trauma, tragedy, redemption, and even a little humor. Sherry Jones Mayo has been an Emergency Medical Technician, Emergerncy Room Nurse, and an on-scene critical incident debriefer for Hurricane Katrina. Most people who have observed or experienced physical, mental or emotional crisis have single perspectives. This book allows readers to stand on both sides of the gurney; it details a progression from innocence to enlightened caregiver to burnout, glimpsing into each stage personally and professionally. Emergency Service Professionals Praise Confessions of a Trauma Junkie "A must read for those who choose to subject themselves to life at its best and at its worst. Sherry offers insight in the Emergency Response business that most people cannot imagine." --Maj Gen Richard L. Bowling, former Commanding General, USAF Auxiliary (CAP) "Sherry Mayo shares experiences and unique personal insights of first responders. Told with poetry, sensitivity and a touch of humor at times, all are real, providing views into realities EMTs, Nurses, and other first responders encounter. Recommended reading for anyone working with trauma, crises, critical incidents in any profession." -- George W. Doherty, MS, LPC, President Rocky Mountain Region Disaster Mental Health Institute "Sherry has captured the essence of working with people who have witnessed trauma. It made me cry, it made me laugh, it helped me to understand differently the work of our Emergency Services Personnel. I consider this a 'MUST READ' for all of us who wish to be helpful to those who work in these professions." --Dennis Potter, LMSW, CAAC, FAAETS, ICISF Instructor "Confessions of a Trauma Junkie is an honest, powerful, and moving account of the emotional realities of helping others! Sherry Mayo gives us a privileged look into the healing professions she knows firsthand. The importance of peer support is beautifully illustrated. This book will deepen the readers respect for those who serve." --Victor Welzant, PsyD, Director of Education and Training, The International Critical Incident Stress Foundation, Inc Learn more at ... Available in trade paper, hardcover, and eBook formats From the Reflections of America Series Modern History Press ... MED003010 Medical: Allied Health Services - Emergency Medical Services BIO017520 Biography & Autobiography: Medical - General PSY022040 Psychology: Psychopathology - Post Traumatic Stress Disorder
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PLEASE NOTE, WE DO NOT SHIP TO DENMARK. New Book. Shipped from UK in 4 to 14 days. Established seller since 2000. Please note we cannot offer an expedited shipping service from the UK.
Choose your shipping method in Checkout. Costs may vary based on destination.
Seller's Description:
PLEASE NOTE, WE DO NOT SHIP TO DENMARK. New Book. Shipped from UK in 4 to 14 days. Established seller since 2000. Please note we cannot offer an expedited shipping service from the UK.
Confessions of a Trauma Junkie, my Life as a Nurse Paramedic by Sherry Jones Mayo, RN, EMTP, NCCM.
You may never have the opportunity to read a book like this again. This true life documentation is an interesting look into the quality and care presented in the most traumatic incidents. Sometimes sad, sometimes humorous, the first part deals with Sherry Jones Mayo's time served as a paramedic. Vignettes of life, injury and death on the run. As with all traumatic jobs, there must be comic relief, and so there is, the "gallows humor" method of retaining one's sanity in an insane world. I do not use the word "insane" to mean anything degrading, simply as that is how the world appears in chaotic, traumatic incidents of life. You will find all of these in this honest non-fiction book.
The second part gives the reader insight into who Sherry is, what inspired her, what obstacles she had to overcome in her own life, and where/how the breaking point can suddenly appear. No holds barred, this is again a very honest approach to her life at several stages, her love of family, and how incidents in the ER can impact her concerns for her family. She has seen it all. It is extremely difficult not to interpret what is happening at work with what might be happening to her own family. Separating family and work is definitely not as easy as in other occupations.
The third part could well be called survival of the staff from the patients in the ER. It is, for the most part, lighter and a definite theme of how to survive the abuse of the patients. Told with tongue firmly planted in cheek, it is a day-to-day list of patience above and beyond when it comes to receiving patients who are not really sick or are just simply demanding. The people who are "too sick" to tend to themselves but can manage well enough to treat the caregivers like servants. Then there are the "regulars", people trying to get drugs by acting out pain and telling the doctors what they need. Here, too, "gallows humor" reigns from necessity.
The fourth section covers in part living with grief, accepting it, healing, and remembering the positive. I found a personal connection in both getting through grief and, further in this section, the result of delayed grief. With delayed grief, it is an entirely different feeling and can hit at any time, even decades later. It lays buried, waiting until some trigger leaves a person reeling and not understanding why. The content of this section was very helpful to me personally. I highly recommend the book on the merits of this segment especially. Referring to grief, Sherry is not only talking about the need for families of patients, but for those attending to the patients, and their families too.
Hurricane Katrina brings Crisis Intervention to the forefront and demonstrates just how important this is. So little could be done by the rescue teams and yet the need to have done more haunts them. This puts a great burden on these people and consequently on their families. This distinct section is a very important read, and it explains a lot of delays that occurred at the time. This portion and the following deal mainly with the very real problems facing even seasoned ER personnel and the need for crisis intervention.
All told, this book will bring a greater understanding of just how much these very special people are capable of, how caring they are, and why some burn out so soon. I definitely recommend this book on many levels. Who has not had some connection to this field at some point in their lives? This is how it is, written faithfully and dealing more with outcomes and feelings than a gory tale.
The book is very well written with a nice balance to hold the lay person's attention. There is also a glossary at the end of the book, although most terms are either recognizable or explained along the way.