Wait a minute!
MOST OF US do not like to wait since often we are in a hurry to get to a meeting, get the shopping done, finish our errands, or go home to cook for our family and “put our feet up.” We might wait for a phone call or letter to arrive or for water to boil for a good cup of tea. We wait until the next month to go on vacation or to buy a car. Waiting in line at a store or drive-through might be aggravating to us, but there are so many other types of waiting in our lives.
Waiting can be an aggravation, and it’s a part of life. It also can be something we enjoy. We often wait in a restaurant for a table where we will enjoy a meal, or in a darkened theater before the movie starts. This type of waiting can be energizing and pleasant. Waiting for a package delivery can be fun since it can bring a long-awaited purchase or gift.
But medical waiting can make us anxious sometimes. This type of waiting relates to some serious life events, and we usually get nervous about what might happen to us, thinking about our future, and feeling overwhelmed.
Our waiting can begin when we notice the medical appointment on our calendar. We can start being anxious weeks before the actual visit to the medical facility. We wonder if our dentist will find any decay or worn fillings in our mouth, and we worry about the procedure and how we’ll pay for the work.
Sometimes we get psyched out if we have a medical test, because the test is long and we are sitting in the exam room with paper clothing on, all needed for the test. We are cold, alone, and feeling vulnerable. We do not like the fact we are powerless for those minutes. We also wonder whether they’ll find anything as a result of the test.
Waiting for a red light, although frustrating, does not change our lives in a devastating or significant way, but some medical waiting can. We are thrust into waiting where the outcomes can change our lives dramatically. This is the significant, serious waiting that drains our hearts and minds.
When we enter a medical waiting room, we start the emotional rollercoaster. Waiting rooms are often a hub of frenzied emotional and spiritual angst. Waiting is a vibrant activity that will lead to some new outcome. We have to visit our doctor again for more tests or to discuss our upcoming surgery. The waiting room can be a place of fear and transition. We often need help waiting here and then moving out of the waiting room to what’s next in life.
The waiting room experience is difficult and usually stays with us even after we leave. We carry the emotions and spiritual worries with us wherever we go. We all eventually make these waiting room stops on our life journey. To make the experience a little less traumatic, our faith, spirituality, family, and friends can help ease the challenging wait time.
There are some ways we can lessen our medical anxiety. Sometimes having a family member or friend accompany us can ease our anxiety. Others might find reading a reflective or spiritual book or listening to a podcast helpful. When we face difficult diagnoses, changes in our health and well-being, significant surgeries, and losses in health and independence, the time of waiting can be frightening and isolating—if we allow it to be.
So many of us have to deal with medical tests. We can get agitated about the physical test. Sometimes, a little prayer allows us to think more objectively, more broadly, and we can shift our thinking about our test and remember a family member or friend who is going through medical challenges. They might be going through some very difficult waiting: waiting for a medical test result or a conference with three surgeons on how to proceed with a loved one’s life-threatening disease. These life events have more somber and difficult waiting than the checkout at the grocery store. The challenging waiting for life-and-death medical decisions is psychologically and spiritually draining on a spouse and family.
Although we do not have control over test results or a diagnosis, we can try to calm ourselves during the time before our tests or medical results. A friend of mine, who is a cancer survivor, said, “I was anxious during the blood work and biopsy. I said a few prayers and took deep breaths. At some time, I became calm and realized I either had cancer or didn’t. I decided that since I couldn’t do anything to change my test results, I could take charge of how I faced my medical future, and a big surge of calm rushed over me.”
So many people are remarkable and truly embrace their health conditions. They are examples to many of us. I call a friend and ask them about certain tests or procedures I do not know much about. I also talk to the nurse about my concerns about an upcoming procedure, and so often, they are the ones who reassure me, making me less ready to cancel my appointment.
And so often, I remember that after all these medical tests and results, I can go home and put my feet up. And then no matter the results, I gather the energy for what is next in my healthcare journey. Knowing that there are people to be with me beyond the waiting room in the next part of my health story makes me feel a little more at peace.
God give me patience, and do it right now! I will wait for the answer.
Sister Karen Zielinski is the Director of Canticle Studio. Canticle Studio is a part of the Sisters of St. Francis of Sylvania, OH’s overall advancement effort and has a mission of being a creative center where artists generate works, products, and services in harmony with the mission of the Sisters St. Francis. She can be reached at kzielins@sistersosf.org or 419-824-3543.
