A Nurse's Touch Makes All The Difference.

Again the simple gestures make the most difference.

Heartburn had reared its rather ugly head in me. For the first time and it was quite a shocker. How on earth do people live with heartburn on a daily or continuous basis? Not fun at all as most of the food and drinks taste horrible never mind the pain. At one stage I couldn't even finish a glass of wine!

It was a new experience for me. One that made me by-pass the panacea offered by the advertising media. Yes, I went to my doctor. The media makes it look like such a common problem and one that can be solved by popping a tablet whenever you need one. No, I am too much of a media cynic. Doctor's rooms it was.

That in itself was quite fun as I happened to choose a day when those who need to have their monthly blood tests, were having them. Everyone knew each other and even joked about who had the best numbers! Trés jollie...

Our local doctors are the bee's knees and simply fabulous and thorough. I was sent to have tests done to get to the bottom of this heartburn. Sometimes heartburn isn't just heartburn but something more sinister. So having it seen to makes sense on every level. Of course I had no idea of what it might entail but I found out the very next day...

Oh yes, I had a Gastroscopy or rather a thin tube housing a camera put into my mouth and down my throat ( as Google defines, an examination of the gullet and stomach - charming indeed). To be honest, it was not the nicest procedure to have but there are worse things in life, aren't there? When I felt close to tears, the nurse standing by my side kept on stroking my face and said.

" There there, it is almost done. "

that gentle touch made a huge difference to me and I couldn't thank her enough afterwards. As a society, we tend to forget how important a nurse is to us. They take care of us and force us out of our patient's doldrums. Thank goodness for them.

As for my heartburn, it was good that I had this procedure done because it showed what was happening and how to treat it. When not treated, it can lead to serious illness later on.

We all know not to touch or God forbid, drink acid.
In a way ( or at least that is how I think of it ), heartburn is the pain felt when stomach acid flows into the Oesophagus. Yes, this acid should only be in our stomach where it breaks down our food. Nowhere near the oesophugus.

If you do suffer from heartburn, why not go and have it checked out with your doctor. Better safe than sorry...

Biggi