Fernanda’s social worker was a big help: she assured her that her negative feelings were normal.
Transcript
What the renal unit had which was a phenomenal source of support for me—and I don’t know if they still have it or not—was when shortly after dad, shortly after dad died and after mom went back on dialysis and I was going through a really tough time, really tough—I was trying to juggle the job, mom’s appointments, I didn’t know if she was going to, trying to deal with the grief of losing my dad, I don’t know if she was going to make it or not—and I was just really, really overwhelmed. And, her name was [name of social worker], and she was a type of a social worker, and she would come and see me at my work for an hour. So I’d take my lunch once a week and she would come and talk to me. And there were times there when I don’t how I would have done it, because she gave me the skills. By talking to me and by making suggestions and understanding. And whenever I had these feelings and I’d say, “How can I be feeling this?” the words out of her mouth were always, “It’s normal. You’re okay.” When you don’t feel okay, when you don’t feel normal, she was a huge support for me and, again, this was by the health region and I don’t know whether they offer it anymore or not—I don’t think they do. And she, in turn, her husband got cancer and she became a caregiver, so it’s funny how the wheel sort of turns around.
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