And We Must Breathe
Ask any parent. Having children is a supreme act of faith. This revelation does not come easy to one who is particularly uncomfortable kneeling at unfamiliar alters. It hurts my knees. Yet there is no more durable truism.It starts with birth. The awareness of our own unique helplessness is overwhelming. We are a slave to our children's genetics, environment, and wholly uncontrollable luck. We skitter to command a million details to defray the constant anxiety of that which can't be governed. We worry, lose sleep, and panic till the day we feebly shrug our shoulders and accept. T...
Source: In My Humble Opinion - May 17, 2017 Category: Primary Care Authors: Jordan Grumet Source Type: blogs
And We Must Breath
Ask any parent. Having children is a supreme act of faith. This revelation does not come easy to one who is particularly uncomfortable kneeling at unfamiliar alters. It hurts my knees. Yet there is no more durable truism.It starts with birth. The awareness of our own unique helplessness is overwhelming. We are a slave to our children's genetics, environment, and wholly uncontrollable luck. We skitter to command a million details to defray the constant anxiety of that which can't be governed. We worry, lose sleep, and panic till the day we feebly shrug our shoulders and accept. T...
Source: In My Humble Opinion - May 17, 2017 Category: Primary Care Authors: Jordan Grumet Source Type: blogs
Changing Lanes
I drive a fast car. Which if you know me, is quite uncharacteristic. I would say that it is one the few possessions that generally doesn ' t reflect upon who I am. How I chose this car, the make, and model, are a long story not to be discussed here. But let ' s just say that it has quite a kick.These thoughts jostled through my mind this morning as I pulled into the hospital parking lot. A recent momentous decision, I surrendered my privileges at this hospital and started using the hospitalists. It had all become too hard. The inane compliance issues with the new EMR. The ER attendi...
Source: In My Humble Opinion - May 5, 2017 Category: Primary Care Authors: Jordan Grumet Source Type: blogs
Changing Lanes
I drive a fast car. Which if you know me, is quite uncharacteristic. I would say that it is one the few possessions that generally doesn't reflect upon who I am. How I chose this car, the make, and model, are a long story not to be discussed here. But let's just say that it has quite a kick.These thoughts jostled through my mind this morning as I pulled into the hospital parking lot. A recent momentous decision, I surrendered my privileges at this hospital and started using the hospitalists. It had all become too hard. The inane compliance issues with the new EMR. The ER attendings ...
Source: In My Humble Opinion - May 5, 2017 Category: Primary Care Authors: Jordan Grumet Source Type: blogs
Letting Go
You can let go now!As Hannah's granddaughter clutched at her skeletal fingers, the blanket fell to the side revealing the faded serial numbers on her forearm. The family gathered, yet again, to say goodbye. This time her acrid breath had lost humidity, her respirations dry and raspy, the extremities mottled with a bluish tinge.Death had visited the neighborhood before. Lounged in the parlor. Nibbled on crackers and tea. But letting go was not so easy. Sure the signs were there. There were the bouts of unconsciousness lasting days. The hours of irregular breathing with long gaps. The ...
Source: In My Humble Opinion - April 1, 2017 Category: Primary Care Authors: Jordan Grumet Source Type: blogs
Letting Go
You can let go now!As Hannah's granddaughter clutched at her skeletal fingers, the blanket fell to the side revealing the faded serial numbers on her forearm. The family gathered, yet again, to say goodbye. This time her acrid breath had lost humidity, her respirations dry and raspy, the extremities mottled with a bluish tinge.Death had visited the neighborhood before. Lounged in the parlor. Nibbled on crackers and tea. But letting go was not so easy. Sure the signs were there. There were the bouts of unconsciousness lasting days. The hours of irregular breathing with long gaps. The ...
Source: In My Humble Opinion - April 1, 2017 Category: Primary Care Authors: Jordan Grumet Source Type: blogs
Drip Drip
Get out.It was not so much the words as the overall tone of the interaction. The doctor-patient relationship had been generally affable. There was the usual exchange of pleasantries over the years. Questions about family, children and grandchildren. It was a good relationship. Until Harvey got sick, that is.Originally there was weight loss and fatigue. The initial physical exam and slew of testing showed nothing but a frail, cachectic, middle aged man. A few cat scans later and he was in the oncologist's office discussing chemotherapy. A regimen was decided on, and therapy be...
Source: In My Humble Opinion - March 17, 2017 Category: Primary Care Authors: Jordan Grumet Source Type: blogs
Drip Drip
Get out.It was not so much the words as the overall tone of the interaction. The doctor-patient relationship had been generally affable. There was the usual exchange of pleasantries over the years. Questions about family, children and grandchildren. It was a good relationship. Until Harvey got sick, that is.Originally there was weight loss and fatigue. The initial physical exam and slew of testing showed nothing but a frail, cachectic, middle aged man. A few cat scans later and he was in the oncologist's office discussing chemotherapy. A regimen was decided on, and therapy be...
Source: In My Humble Opinion - March 16, 2017 Category: Primary Care Authors: Jordan Grumet Source Type: blogs
Five Moments Book Excerpt
“Dad . . . you can let go now.”Thomas heard his daughter ’s voice from a distance. It awakened him from his reverie. He relived those five moments of life and took their lessons seriously.Rejoice in the ordinary as if you were a child seeing everything for the first time.Unconditional love can lift you up.
Forgive yourself over and over again.
No matter how much we deny it, we are who we are.Some of the most difficult battles are those in which we choose not to fight.Thomas opened his eyes and smiled. He looked at the faces of his family before him. After all these years he finally got it. He understood the mea...
Source: In My Humble Opinion - March 12, 2017 Category: Primary Care Authors: Jordan Grumet Source Type: blogs
When A Loved One Dies
At first you'll query reality. You will hear your own words, but they will be foreign; apart from you. The ground will still reassuringly push back against your toes when you walk out the room, but you will wonder if they are your feet-your ground. Like in a movie, you will negotiate the world convincingly. Yet, you are an actor playing a part. A role. It is not the real you. Be assured that this will pass. Life has changed incomprehensibly in a fraction of a moment. It will take a few more moments for your psyche to advance accordingly. This is not disconnection. This...
Source: In My Humble Opinion - March 6, 2017 Category: Primary Care Authors: Jordan Grumet Source Type: blogs
When A Loved One Dies
At first you'll query reality. You will hear your own words, but they will be foreign; apart from you. The ground will still reassuringly push back against your toes when you walk out the room, but you will wonder if they are your feet-your ground. Like in a movie, you will negotiate the world convincingly. Yet, you are an actor playing a part. A role. It is not the real you. Be assured that this will pass. Life has changed incomprehensibly in a fraction of a moment. It will take a few more moments for your psyche to advance accordingly. This is not disconnection. This...
Source: In My Humble Opinion - March 5, 2017 Category: Primary Care Authors: Jordan Grumet Source Type: blogs
Five Moments Now Available
If Thomas were to write his own eulogy, these surely wouldn ’t be the five moments that he picked. In fact, it ’s safe to say that these were memories tucked away in his subconscious. Yet as he lay on his bed anticipating death, he relived these precious minutes as if they just happened...And so begins my new book of short fiction,Five Moments. This collection of short stories approaches the foibles of the human condition, often as seen through a physicians view point. Crafted over years, each draws from my experiences as a caregiver, a parent, and human being. During the marketing ...
Source: In My Humble Opinion - March 1, 2017 Category: Primary Care Authors: Jordan Grumet Source Type: blogs
Neither Was Mine
There are parts of medicine that are horrendous. Moments too painful to recount. Events that will break even the most innocent participants.And then there is unspeakable magic.I live for the days when a patient comes to the office with a particularly vexing set of symptoms. Specialist after specialist bows their head in disagreement. Laboratory values whisper falsehoods with jeering tongues. Symptoms are transient, physical exam signs inconsistent, and in the midst of head scratching an answer mysteriously appears. Maybe a common presentation of a rare disease. Or a rare presentation...
Source: In My Humble Opinion - February 26, 2017 Category: Primary Care Authors: Jordan Grumet Source Type: blogs
