Day 2 of clinical

Today was my second day of clinical although I was still nervous it turned out to be another great day. I cannot wait until the day I feel comfortable and confident. One moment that really stands out from today was when I helped feed D. This was my first time helping out with feeding, I walked into the dining room (full of nervous energy) and was told to sit with D. They told me to mix his cereal and his yogurt into two glasses of liquid that he would then drink. One looked like chocolate and one looked like vanilla so I tried to mix the cereal with the vanilla and the strawberry yogurt into the chocolate to try to come up with great tasting flavour combinations. This was my first experience with D. he wasn’t verbal but we did have a moment when he stared at me for a while, he did seem to have difficulty opening his eyes and maintaining eye contact but he did, so I made sure to maintain eye contact and smile.  He seemed to be checking me out, maybe trying to assess whether I made the cut or not. So I decided speak to him mentioning how the strawberry and chocolate smelled great and how it was hard to stay awake because it was so early. It was a wonderful moment and I’m pretty sure I made the cut. It makes me feel sad when I see people who once were full of life seem to now be stuck in their own body. I didn’t have much of a problem helping him drink but every now and then he would start coughing so I put the cup down and rubbed his back to try and provide some comfort. If I get the opportunity to hang out with D. again I think I will try to talk to him more even if he doesn’t seem to respond and rest my left hand on his arm to provide more comfort while he performs the difficult task of eating. Next week we’re on our own eek!