Amara Chapman, an extraordinarily beautiful yet shy, unassuming girl, is torn from her home and all she'd ever known when her grandmother suddenly passes away.
Reluctantly sent to live with her estranged father in Chicago, he wants nothing to do wi...
Her bloodshot eyes widen as if she recognizes me somehow before she begins to panic and tries to thrash around...which thankfully her casts restrict her from doing too much.
Most all coma patients' first reaction when they wake is to reach for the endotracheal tube and try to yank it out, often hurting themselves, which is what she's obviously trying to do, but thankfully can't.
"Amara...calm down, please," I soothe and she responds to my voice instantly, looking up at me, making me smile.
"I am Dr. Sinclair," I begin. "If you'll stay still, I will remove the tube," I point to her mouth. Her eyes look at me, pleading for me to take it out. "I know...those things are no fun," I sympathize...though I never have before.
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"When I tell you to, cough," I say as I make sure that the ETT cuff is not over-inflated.
"Cough," I instruct, as I begin to gently yet quickly remove the tube. Her eyes water as she gags and coughs a bit more. I turn and tell Nina to start the morphine drip.
She begins to take ragged breaths on her own, and it's a glorious sound.
"W-wh...where?" she croaks out between breaths as her eyes dart around.
"You're at Northwestern Hospital," I answer as I pour her a glass of water and then place the flexible straw in the cup, before pushing the button to slowly raise her bed enough, so that she can swallow without choking.
"Here, drink this. It will help," I smile warmly as I slowly bring the straw towards her dry, cracked lips.
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She timidly takes the proffered straw between her lips, taking several draws of the cool, fresh water before I pull it back. If she drinks too much, too fast, it can make her vomit, and I don't want to cause her anymore stress.
I tell Nina to go and get a packet of Vaseline.
"How...long?" she rasps a bit clearer, with a distinct southern twang that I find utterly adorable.
