#Care Walk Clinic in Texas

[urgentcareoftx]

Revolutionizing Healthcare with Remote Patient Monitoring at Urgent Care of Texas

In today’s fast-paced world, staying on top of your health can be challenging. However, with the advent of Remote Patient Monitoring (RPM), healthcare providers like Urgent Care of Texas are transforming the way patients receive care. By combining cutting-edge technology with compassionate care, we ensure that you stay connected to your health journey without the need for constant clinic visits.

If you’re searching for the Best Urgent Care in Arlington, Best Urgent Care in Texas, or the Best walk-in clinic in Arlington, Urgent Care of Texas is your trusted partner in innovative healthcare solutions, including remote monitoring.

What is Remote Patient Monitoring (RPM)?

Remote Patient Monitoring (RPM) is a revolutionary healthcare service that uses technology to collect patient data outside traditional healthcare settings. Devices like wearable monitors, blood pressure cuffs, and glucometers send real-time health data to healthcare providers. This allows providers at Urgent Care Arlington TX to track your vital signs, manage chronic conditions, and intervene promptly if necessary.

Our Urgent Care Texas locations, including the Best Urgent Care in Arlington, offer RPM as part of a comprehensive suite of services to improve patient outcomes and convenience.

Benefits of Remote Patient Monitoring

1. Convenient and Accessible Healthcare

At Urgent Care of Texas, we understand that frequent clinic visits can be inconvenient, especially for patients managing chronic conditions. RPM eliminates this hassle by providing consistent care from the comfort of your home. Patients can monitor their health and share data with their care team without disrupting their daily lives.

2. Improved Health Outcomes

For patients in need of regular monitoring, RPM ensures that any deviations in health are detected early. This is particularly beneficial for managing chronic illnesses such as diabetes, hypertension, and heart disease. The Best walk-in clinic in Arlington prioritizes early intervention, ensuring our patients receive timely care.

3. Reduced Healthcare Costs

RPM reduces unnecessary hospital visits and readmissions by providing proactive care. Patients at Urgent Care Arlington TX benefit from affordable healthcare without compromising quality.

4. Personalized Care Plans

Every patient is unique, and RPM allows our providers to design personalized treatment plans. By continuously monitoring your health data, the team at the Best Urgent Care in Texas ensures that your treatment is always aligned with your current needs.

How Does RPM Work at Urgent Care of Texas?

Step 1: Initial Assessment

Patients visiting Urgent Care Arlington TX undergo an initial assessment to determine if they’re suitable for RPM. Conditions like high blood pressure, diabetes, and post-surgical recovery are ideal candidates for remote monitoring.

Step 2: Device Setup and Training

Once enrolled, our team provides the necessary devices and detailed instructions. We ensure patients are comfortable using the technology, making Urgent Care Texas a leader in patient education.

Step 3: Continuous Monitoring

Patients’ health data is monitored in real-time by our expert care team at Urgent Care of Texas. Any significant changes trigger alerts, allowing us to intervene promptly.

Step 4: Regular Follow-ups

Through video consultations or in-person visits to the Best walk-in clinic in Arlington, patients receive feedback and updates to their care plans.

Why Choose Urgent Care of Texas for RPM?

1. Expertise and Compassion

As the Best Urgent Care in Arlington, we pride ourselves on combining advanced medical technology with compassionate care. Our providers are highly skilled in monitoring and interpreting RPM data to ensure optimal outcomes.

2. State-of-the-Art Technology

At Urgent Care Arlington TX, we utilize the latest devices for accurate and reliable monitoring. Whether it’s a wearable heart rate monitor or a glucose meter, our technology is user-friendly and efficient.

3. Comprehensive Services

From RPM to walk-in visits, the Best Urgent Care in Texas offers a full range of services to address all your healthcare needs.

4. Convenient Locations

With multiple locations across Texas, including the Best walk-in clinic in Arlington, we make healthcare accessible to everyone.

Conditions We Manage with RPM

1. Chronic Disease Management

Chronic illnesses like diabetes and hypertension require consistent monitoring. RPM allows patients at Urgent Care Arlington TX to manage these conditions effectively while maintaining their quality of life.

2. Post-Surgical Recovery

Patients recovering from surgery can benefit from RPM, which ensures their recovery process is on track. At Urgent Care Texas, we closely monitor post-surgical patients to prevent complications.

3. Respiratory Conditions

For conditions like asthma or COPD, RPM devices help track lung function and oxygen levels. The Best Urgent Care in Arlington ensures that patients receive prompt care in case of flare-ups.

4. Preventive Care

RPM isn’t just for managing illnesses—it’s also a valuable tool for preventive care. Regular monitoring helps detect potential issues before they become serious, making Urgent Care of Texas a pioneer in proactive healthcare.

How RPM Enhances Urgent Care Services

RPM complements our traditional urgent care services by bridging the gap between clinic visits. Patients can visit the Best Urgent Care in Texas for acute issues and rely on RPM for continuous care. This hybrid model ensures patients receive the best of both worlds.

Testimonials from RPM Patients

Sarah T. from Arlington, TX:

“I’ve been using RPM for my diabetes management, and it’s been a game-changer. The team at Urgent Care Arlington TX is always available to answer my questions. Highly recommend their services!”

John L. from Dallas, TX:

“Thanks to the RPM services at Urgent Care Texas, I’ve been able to manage my blood pressure without frequent clinic visits. Their technology is easy to use and incredibly efficient.”

FAQs About Remote Patient Monitoring at Urgent Care of Texas

Q1: Is RPM covered by insurance? Yes, most insurance plans cover RPM services. Visit the Best walk-in clinic in Arlington to learn more about your coverage options.

Q2: Do I need to visit the clinic for RPM setup? Yes, the initial setup and training are done at our locations, including Urgent Care Arlington TX, to ensure patients are comfortable with the devices.

Q3: Can RPM replace clinic visits? RPM is designed to supplement, not replace, in-person care. Patients can still visit the Best Urgent Care in Texas for acute medical needs.

Visit Urgent Care of Texas for Remote Patient Monitoring

At Urgent Care of Texas, we’re committed to providing innovative and accessible healthcare solutions. Whether you’re managing a chronic illness or looking for preventive care, our RPM services are designed to keep you connected to your health.

With convenient locations, compassionate providers, and cutting-edge technology, we’re proud to be recognized as the Best Urgent Care in Arlington and the Best Urgent Care in Texas.

Don’t wait—take control of your health today! Visit the Best walk-in clinic in Arlington or contact us to learn more about our Remote Patient Monitoring services.

Contact Us: 📍 Visit our website: Urgent Care of Texas 📞 Call now to schedule an appointment or inquire about RPM services.

📞Call us today and experience the care you deserve!

6407 S Cooper St # 117

Arlington, TX 76001

arlington@wiuctx.us

📞+1 (817) 472-7601

📞+1 (817) 472-7213

633 SW Johnson Ave

Burleson, TX 76028, USA

burleson@wiuctx.us

📞+1 (817) 295-5520

📞+1 (817) 295-5572

3909 W Parker Rd

Plano, TX 75023, USA

plano@wiuctx.us

📞+1 (469) 609-3062

📞+1 (972) 867-9400

Conclusion

Remote Patient Monitoring is the future of healthcare, and Urgent Care of Texas is leading the charge. By choosing us, you’re not just getting care—you’re getting peace of mind. Experience the convenience and reliability of RPM today at the Best Urgent Care in Arlington or any of our Texas locations.

Your health is our priority.

[covidsafecosplay]

This Week in Covid & Health News (Posted November 14, 2024)

Covid-Safe Cosplay and its admin are unaffiliated with any of the sites or authors linked below, we're simply sharing the information. If you have related news links that we missed, especially in other languages, please share either in the comments or a reblog.

General

San Fransisco Chronicle: Sonoma County reinstates mask mandate for health care workers amid rising illnesses (Nov. 12, 2024)

NPR: What happens when a vaccine skeptic leads health policy? Ask Florida (Nov. 13, 2024)

Covid-19

The Beacon: Weathered COVID before? Scientists say every new infection puts you at risk of getting long COVID (Nov. 11, 2024)

CIDRAP: Cardiac inflammation markers show role of long-COVID symptoms (Nov. 12, 2024)

Cleveland: Having COVID-19 doubles long-term risk of heart attack, stroke, new Clinic study suggests (Nov. 13, 2024)

Avian Flu

Hawaii News Now: Avian flu detected on Oahu for the first time ever (Nov. 12, 2024)

CNN: Canadian teen in critical condition with bird flu; source of exposure is unknown (Nov. 13, 2024)

Global News: As bird flu emerges in Canada, experts urge preparedness (Nov. 13, 2024)

Stat: Canadian teen's bird flu infection is not the version found in cows (Nov. 13, 2024)

Fortune: Canadian teenager in critical condition with presumptive bird flu as U.S. official warns the virus 'seems to be gearing up for wider impact' (Nov. 13, 2024)

TIME: Is It Time to Worry About Bird Flu? (Nov. 13, 2024)

Whooping Cough

WPRI: 4 Portsmouth High School students have 'very contagious' whooping cough (Nov. 12, 2024)

ABC News: Washington state sees 'sharp increase' in whooping cough cases, mirroring rise across US (Nov. 12, 2024)

KHOU: Whooping cough cases surge in Texas, across country in 2024, DSHS says (Nov. 12, 2024)

KOIN: Whooping cough, chickenpox outbreaks hit Clark County schools (Nov. 12, 2024)

The Spokesman-Review: Six Spokane County residents hospitalized with whooping cough during outbreak (Nov. 12, 2024)

Fox KTVU: Bay Area surge in whooping cough; some counties see highest numbers in decade (Nov. 13, 2024)

CNY Central: Health officials warn of increased whooping cough spread in local schools (Nov. 14, 2024)

Walking Pneumonia

CDC: Mycoplasma Pneumoniae Infections Have Been Increasing (Oct. 18, 2024)

WTOP: Urgent care centers report 'unprecedented' spike in walking pneumonia cases around DC area (Nov. 14, 2024)

[moontyger]

It was a tip that brought a dog to the main post office in downtown Jackson, Mississippi. An employee there had reported seeing someone in the lobby putting pills into hot pink envelopes.

Hours later, Ed Steed, a police officer from the small city of Richland, just south of Jackson, walked into a back room at the post office where one of the envelopes had been set aside. Steed, a K-9 handler, arrived with Rip, his narcotics sniffer dog. Rip strode around and, when he got to the pink envelope, sat down. According to records obtained through a Freedom of Information Act request, Steed said this meant the dog had smelled narcotics. That claim became evidence to get a warrant to open the envelope.

This, though, was no ordinary drug bust. As it turned out, there were pills inside the package, but they were not the kind that Rip or other police K-9s are trained to detect. The envelope contained five pills labeled “AntiPreg Kit.” They were made in India, and their medical purpose is to induce abortion. Dwayne Martin, at the time the head of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service in Jackson, told me this was exactly what the initial tipster had suspected.

...

What will happen to abortion-pills-by-mail and the people who use them if Donald Trump is elected in November? As the accounts of the regional USPIS head and FOIA documents show, a piecemeal crackdown is already underway during a Democratic administration. Under a Trump regime, things might go much further.

Whoever is in power, the incident in Jackson provides a potential window into the future — one in which freelancing local Postal Service employees and officials can call on local cops to halt women from accessing reproductive care and potentially charge and arrest those providing or using abortion medication.

My FOIA request asked for records from past years of investigations of people who’d used the mail to send pills. The documents I got back show how a willing administration might go after distributors. The feds could even lend support to police in states that have criminalized abortion care as they pursue cases under local laws. Pregnant people who order the medications could get caught in the dragnet.

The documents I received after my FOIA request were highly redacted but still reveal many details about a federal investigation that began less than two years ago in Mississippi. Dozens of envelopes with abortion pills were seized. The bust followed on the heels of the Supreme Court overturning Roe v. Wade, and came after a group of anti-abortion doctors filed a federal lawsuit in Texas, arguing that abortion pills should be banned from the mail.

The Jackson investigation apparently also employed what’s called a mail cover: a little-known Postal Service method for collecting data about people suspected of committing crimes. Using an enormous database of images of the outside of envelopes and packages, postal inspectors can digitally compare names, addresses, and other information on one item to others. And the findings can be freely shared with almost any law enforcement agency that requests them. The return address for the hot pink envelope in Jackson included an unused post office box number, the sort of information postal inspectors can use to correlate parcels to each other.

Reproductive justice activist Laurie Bertram Roberts worries about an anti-abortion regime taking power. They direct the Jackson-based Mississippi Reproductive Freedom Fund, which assists fellow Mississippians with any reproductive decision they make, from having a baby, to leaving the state to go to an abortion clinic, to using pills at home.

In a state where abortion is strictly banned post-Roe, Bertram Roberts is also a doula. Along with other doulas, they have organized help for people at the end of their pregnancies, including those which do not come to term. Whether that end is due miscarriage or to abortion is immaterial. “We don’t ask,” they said.

The pink-envelope investigation came out of a sort of collaboration between the feds’ regional offices and a local official: U.S postal workers and a city K-9 cop. Though no one in Mississippi has yet been arrested for helping carry out an abortion, Bertram Roberts fears that synergy. They leaned forward and tensed their lips as I opened my computer and pulled up images I’d obtained from the FOIA request: photos the USPIS had taken, in a post office parking lot, of vehicles suspected of belonging to the person who mailed the pills. 

Bertram Roberts peered anxiously at the screen. “I don’t recognize them!” they said. Their face relaxed, but they shook their head. “The thing I worry about most is people getting criminalized.

...

Using local dogs creates risk for abortion-seekers. With the post office inviting local law enforcement to assist with federal investigations, local police could theoretically do their own investigations, by copying names and addresses from the mail. And they could pass that information to anti-abortion district attorneys. 

Police dogs, however, are trained to smell only the illegal drugs heroin, marijuana, ecstasy, fentanyl, and cocaine, not the ingredients in abortion pills, which currently remain legal. And the K-9s’ forensic reliability is suspect.

Why would a police dog alert on abortion pills in the first place, when they’re not narcotics?

Martel, the USPIS national spokesperson, speculated that the pills found in Jackson were contaminated in the manufacturing process by trace amounts of a drug such as marijuana, or perhaps someone was handling narcotics when they did the packing and left molecules behind that only canines’ super-sensitive noses can detect.

Theories along these lines are widespread among police, and they’re inherently impossible to disprove. Elisa Wells, a co-founder and co-director of Plan C, is skeptical. She said her group has conducted laboratory analyses of various brands of foreign-made abortion pills. They’ve all been pure, she said, and no one has ever complained about their containing narcotics.

There is another reason why a K-9 can zero in on a package that’s devoid of illicit drugs. Animal researchers call it “cueing.” Canines are exquisitely sensitive to the minutiae of a human’s posture, eye movements, and other subtle behaviors. Handlers wishing to develop probable cause to do intrusive searches for narcotics can coax their dogs into drug-alerting behavior. To get a reward, the dog will alert, even if nothing illegal is present. (Steed, the K-9 handler, declined to be interviewed for this story.)

Cueing can be deliberate, but it’s more often unconscious. In 2011, Lisa Lit, a researcher at the University of California, Davis, published a now-famous study in which she told the handlers of several police dogs that their K-9s would be searching for “target scents” hidden randomly in several containers. She put red tape on some containers and said it marked the targets. In reality, none of the containers had scents. Even so, most of the dogs alerted on containers, especially those with red tape.

[ravennaortiz]

Margs and Moms

Summary: During a dinner and playdate we learn more about Lil Joeys family and what bought them to Yuma. This is part of the Two Worlds Universe.

“Refill is here!” called Pam as she danced out the patio door to the table. Manny laughed as he watched Liliana and Karens faces light up as they held out there glasses. “Hope you weren’t heavy handed on this pitcher” he stated as he watched the two women dissolve into giggles as their glasses clinked. “Ehhh” shrugged Pam as she poured the newest round of margaritas. Manny shook his head before glancing towards the pool where Julieta and Lil Joey were splashing around. He found himself smiling as he took it all in. Serene. He thought to himself before turning back into the conversation.

“So how did you two meet?” inquired Karen as she looked between Liliana and Manny. “I was in town volunteering at the local women’s clinic. We were having a rough time, some of the locals didn’t like some of the care we offered and we were getting constant death threats. One day I had a group of men follow me to a local diner during my lunch break. Thankfully Manny happened to be there with some of his club members and they …sorted them out. Then he had a rotation of protection set up for the clinic. I always say I was lucky that day” stated Liliana as she smiled at Manny as he held her hand.

“I would say I’m the lucky one. She could have and still could do better” chuckled Manny as he kissed Lilianas hand. “Her daddy sure would agree with me. Probably one of the few things” he added as Liliana shook her head and the other women laughed.  “That’s so sweet” cooed Karen as she looked between them.

“Speaking of the MC. How did you get into that lifestyle if you don’t mind my asking?” inquired Pam curiously. “Pam!” scolded Karen as her eyes widened making Manny laugh. “What?” questioned Pam as she turned to her wife.

“Its okay. Valid question” offered Manny as he took a sip of his margarita. “I’ve always had a thing for bikes. Lived and breathed them. My pops taught me everything I know. We would spend all of our time in the garage or driveway working on them or out riding. Tracking dirt and grime through the house much to me mothers annoyance.” Started Manny as he considered his journey and how best to explain it.

“Dad passed away during my senior year of high school. Drunk driver hit him head on. My dad who never hurt a fly died while that idiot walked away with a few cuts and scrapes. Whole world changed. I changed. I was angry, bitter. Looking for trouble as my thirst for vengeance grew. One day while out driving around I saw the guy at a bar. He was drunk and got in his car and I followed. Lucky for him my bike didn’t start and he got away. A couple members from the Yuma charter were there and offered me a hand. One of them got me into a boxing club to help with the anger. I was around enough that it just was natural to join. Brotherhood, role models a young kid like me needed to stay off the streets in a way.” Finished Manny with a shrug of his shoulders as he glanced to Liliana who nodded as she smiled at him.

“So sorry to hear that. Its never easy to lose a parent young” stated Karen as she reached across the table and patted his hand. “I lost my mom in a similar fashion. It’s a wound that closes but never really heals”

“True that” replied Manny with a nod.

“What brought you both to Yuma? Manny told me you came from Texas?” inquired Liliana as she sipped her drink.

“We were looking for a change. Didn’t want Josiah raised being bullied and thinking having two moms was wrong. It’s one thing for Karen and I to have been bullied, discriminated against but to see it happening to our little boy was devastating” explained Pam as her voice broke as she looked at the kids as Karen pulled her in and held her.

“Texas is big on guns but not love. The atmosphere has gotten worse lately and out little town was a hell. More often than not we were being met with violence and I just couldn’t risk my family” stated Karen firmly.

Liliana frowned as she listened and Manny shook his head. “People just don’t know how to mind their business.” Stated Manny. “I hope you are feeling welcomed so far here. If you two need anything feel free to call. As far as I’m concerned your family”.

“Appreciate that. You and your family have been so kind. Pam and I are very thankful your little girl has been so nice to Josiah. He’s had a hard time making friends but he says Julieta has helped him fit in. Means the world to us to see our little boy coming out of his shell” stated Karen as she wiped at her eyes.

“We will have to do this on a regular basis” stated Liliana as she smirked at Manny.

[ryololart]

Tex's Backstory and Meeting Simon for the First Time

Warnings (all listed here)

Summary: Her childhood roughly and meeting simon

The border from Mexico to The United States is 1,951 miles long running from the Gulf to California. The main point of crossing lies at Ciudad Juarez and El Paso. It is the busiest border with over 300 million people crossing each year. With only three public ports of entry, 650 million dollars a day of goods have to travel through each day. 

Living near the border as a child was an experience to say the least, I saw the horror stories that showed up on the news. From drug deals, children separated from their parents that were jsut  trying to seek asylum, and cartels warring with border control. I saw too much blood as a kid. I knew the familiar sinking of red into the sand and how it smelled when it got hot in the sun. I watched as politicians came and went, claiming they cared and then locked people in cages like animals. I resented the government just as much as I needed them because the stories of deals gone south were just as true as the military coming to build the walls .They told you never  pick up hitchhikers, or stop for a lone car, that’ll be the last thing you ever do. Gunpowder was a familiar smell on Route 90. 

Some of my best friends growing up were immigrants from south of the border, they taught me Spanish, and told me their stories. Carlos was from El Largo, he and his brother were running from the Cartel their father was a part of. He lived down the street in a shack that had been empty for years. They broke in and fixed it up enough to not look suspicious. I had taught him how to replace shingles on a roof and how to put bars over the windows to keep kids from throwing rocks through them. However, his brother sold coke from over the border to make ends meet when he couldn’t get a job. He didn’t speak enough English and skin was too dark. They both died in a train accident when the rival cartel came and blew it up. We lit candles and left flowers at their door. Maia’s family were from Guatemala seeking a better life for her and her five siblings. They walked the entire way only to be made to sleep outside the fence for a half a year while their papers were being processed. Her little sister Nina died from heat stroke that summer. I remember the look on their mother’s face when she got into Sanderson. I had brought the lunch to my brother’s group at the Border Patrol Station where they all huddled together, cups of water in their hands they clung to like they had never seen it before. Outliving your child was one of the worst things to happen to a parent, and the gruesome way little Nina went out made me want to throw up. The desert isn’t kind to those who are fragile and yet she made it, but the government is what failed them. Liana and Marcus were two kids in my class whose family were deported and the two were left behind. They would sleep in the church pews and beg on the streets for money. Those two often stayed at my house when Mason and Papa weren’t home. They were my best friend’s growing up. Liana with her witty attitude and ability to stand up to anyone, and Marcus would throw fists to protect the other Mexican kids in town. They were stronger than I was, always had more grit even when they had nothing to lose. They kept each other going, and some days they kept me going too. 

I grew up in the small, poverty-stricken town of Sanderson, Texas with a population of a little over 600. We have one clinic, a train station, a gas station, a courthouse, two places to eat, a corner store, a library, a highschool, a cemetery, a disgusting motel, and a bizarre museum. It was the classic small town in the middle of nowhere, but at the same time in just the right place for trouble. There was one major place in town, the US Border Patrol Station where people came and went frequently. We were right on the train line coming from El Paso that brought everyone here. It was how the town made the little money we had. Asylum seekers spending what small amounts they had only to get stuck and have to stay for a while. Each week a few families would get off the train and walk the mile out to the UBPS. A few stores and businesses would hire the immigrants but they were unfairly underpaid and coerced into doing the jobs no one else wanted. 

My oldest brother, Mason, was a guard for the UBPS. I wish I could say he was a good man, but he wasn’t. He did things I don’t know if I can even stomach speaking of. Just hearing the door creak open, the shuffle of hard military boots on the weak floorboards, and the disgusting sound of his chirpy voice would make me climb out my bedroom window. I’d rather sleep in the truck bed in the heat of the summer than sleep in the same house as him. He often brought women home from the border only to kick them out on their own the next day. Mason wasn’t even handsome, he just offered that he would help them get on their feet if they paid with their bodies. Sometimes they were single mothers of families desperate for help. He wasn’t gentle either, I often saw them struggling to leave. heading back to the UBPS in the early dawn, covered with bruises. He often would make bets with his other guard friends on whether a kid would cry when they were separated from their parents. Often those kids were taken and never seen again. Trafficking ran rampant during these times. He killed some of them, the ones without papers, the people no one would remember. He would leave what drugs he had that day on their bodies to be found by the dogs. 

Mason is why I can’t stand dogs. He had this mutt, Cargo, vicious thing. He would often neglect him, push him to anger, and reactivity. I felt for him, he was just a dog, a loyal pup who wanted to be loved. Although none of us could get close enough for that without teeth in our arms. He nearly took my finger once. His barking would lead to my hands over my ears, and he often made me sprint inside to avoid him. Ethan and I had to keep him out back because he tried to bite Lucas.

 Mason was very ill, mentally. My friends would avoid him when they came over, hell I avoided him. He was awful to my other brothers and I. When he died in the early 2000s I didn’t flinch, god, I cried in relief. We all took a shot that night, in celebration of that war being fought and won. 

I think my father was the main reason Mason ended up like that. Papa was a cruel man, an alcoholic addicted to cocaine. However, that seemed to be the trend in the Thomas household. I knew he was home by the smell of the burnt rubber and chemicals. When he couldn’t hold a job, which was most of the time, he was doing various odd jobs. He never brought home enough cash to keep us going, especially with the bills from the clinic. He hit us frequently, put a hole in my door more than once, crashed the family’s only car, gave my brothers and I drugs to get us to leave him alone. He was never a father, just a man who abused us and slept on our couch. 

I used to keep my hair short back then, so he couldn’t grab it. Although Mama hated it. She always said she wished I’d kept it long, she only had one baby girl and didn’t need another man in the house. After that I let it grow back out and kept it stuffed up in a cap. She was my world, the only person in my life I was certain I would always love, someone that would never hurt me. Until she got ill. Mama suffered from various forms of mental illness but the worst was her postpartum depression after Lucas was born. I tried not to blame her, I knew how hard it was to live with my father. Hell she married him and had four kids. I did what I could to forgive her knowing it wasn’t her fault, but I was eight when she tried to kill our baby brother and then herself. Left him in the running bathtub while holding my father’s shotgun under her chin. I got him out of the tub while Mason pried the gun out of her hands. 

She faced the worst violence from my father. We all knew it and tried our best to keep him off her. The police had come and taken him away several times but once he got out he just did it again. There was nowhere to go, we had no money, no savings. All of it was spent on drugs. When she died I was thirteen. All the abuse my father had done to her slowly became pushed on to the kids. He had beaten us and screamed at us before, but it was because we weren’t meeting some of his unreasonable expectations. Now it was violence just to be violent. I watched Mason beat the living snot out of him several times and I myself got him on the ground during a few fights we had. Everyone knew my father in the town, knew what he was doing, but it was the 90s, you kept your mouth shut and kept going. What were you to do? Call child services? They would have just laughed into the receiver and hung up the phone.

We lived on 1st street, the farthest one north in town. We took our bikes everywhere because our truck was always broken. I guess that was where I learned I was good with my hands. That house was where I learned that anything could be done with a little bit of physical pushing. I fixed our fallen-through floorboards, collapsed roof, and holes in the walls. I was the one who pulled out and shot the rattlesnake who managed to get into the pipes. I got the truck working when we needed to rush Ethan to the hospital when Father almost beat him to death after he flushed his drugs. I fought Mason when he would bring girls home and force himself on them. I pulled the dog off of Marcus when he tried to jump over the fence to escape the cops. I changed every single one of Lucas’s diapers. I buried Mama with my own money I earned at the hardware store working hours upon hours to get us out of debt. 

Not everything in that house brought me misery however. It’s where my Mama raised me to be a good daughter, her daughter. It’s where we threw Liana and Marcus a birthday party for the first time ever. It’s where Ethan and I raised Lucas to be a good man, who would end the cycle with his own family. It’s where my team stayed when our base was overrun with a cartel and we needed safety. It’s the home I carved it into and goddamn I will die with the blood rotted into the wood. It was where I grew up, for better or worse, I am here now. 

I joined the military as soon as I was old enough. I was promised 20k, 10k before bootcamp and 10k after. The Air Force had set up a base in Val Verde Park just west of Ciudad Acuna. It was called Laughlin Air Force Base. It was two hours from my house and I needed to get away for awhile, find a little peace. When they cut my hair to my shoulders I buried the ends next to my mother. I buried her little girl I was so I could become the woman I was now. I hope she’d be proud of the soldier I have become, because it was in her honor and her sacrifice. She paid the dues and I will carry out the call. The oldest daughter of a broken family’s oath. 

The Air Force stripped me down to my skin and rebuilt me with armor in the fashion of strength, resilience, intelligence, grit, and confidence. It wasn’t that I was lacking these things, but they brought them out as weapons to attack not defend. It was so much different then the guards I grew up with. Their slimy attitudes and total lack of regard for human life. There were the good ones, the one who did it because they genuinely wanted to help, but those are the ones who died quickly. Mercy is a virtue. It is a spark that can be snuffed with a gust of wind just a little too powerful. The only way to feed that into a flame is to fuel it with those who surround you. If they’re the same scumbags who raped, killed, and maimed kids for fun they ain’t gonna be no help to you. 

I was a part of the 47th Maintenance Directorate. I worked on equipment and facilities worth more than the entirety of Sanderson. We worked on Jayhawks, Texan IIs, Talons, and more. I was in the T-38 Aircraft Maintenance Division, mostly focusing on crash recovery. I spent most of my days fixing broken aircraft, assisting in landing, and coordinating movements. Other times it was me, my truck, a radio, and a sandwich sitting in the desert looking for a downed aircraft. It was a good job until the cartels started targeting the base in the late 90s. Those days I had a rifle added to the list. We often fought for ground in the small town and found ourselves doing what we could to defend. One day we had to flee due to a bomb threat and my team and I huddled in my house back in Sanderson when we had nowhere else to go. Lucas loved it, got to hang out with all these cool military men. They taught him some games and songs we learned in bootcamp. Got him to do some exercises and called him “their little man”.

My team were some of the best people I had ever met in my twenty-eight years of life. There were forty of us in the directorate, but only six in my division. Martinez, Cruz, Halcón, Dino, Vaho, and I. Officially my name is Sergeant Master Evangeline Mae Thomas. My initials spell out EMT which no one could stop laughing over as I am the last person to have that as a job occupation. I fix machines, not people. I once couldn’t get a tourniquet on a dummy and the name stuck for a while. 

I fit in there. The barracks became my second home with people I trusted. Martinez was the oldest of seven, had a family to feed and parents to retire. He joined like me, at 18, and rose up through the ranks to get the higher pay grades. I don’t think I had ever seen him slack a day in my life. Cruz and Dino are two twins from over the border, who joined the military to get citizenship. The two are hardwired for trouble but taught me everything I knew about being a technician, just don’t leave an open can around them. Halcón was the best pilot I have met. It was like the console was in his mind and he could control it with his thoughts. He safely would fly damaged and out of control planes back to base after issues being found mid-flight. Not a single thing shook that man. Vaho was our rookie, tough guy from Louisiana. He earned the name Vaho after flying on little-to-no gas without checking with any of us. A little hostile around the edges but give him a cig and he’ll soften like a kitten. 

Papa died in 2003, was drunk and drove into a powerline on Route 90. Took them a few days to find him and his body was already being picked to shreds by the crows. Fitting end for a man plucked the strength of all the people who surrounded him. We didn’t even bury him, let the police do what they wanted. He didn’t deserve to be buried next to my mother and her grave by the spiny star foxtail flowers she loved so much. Mason died the year after, shot in a border crossing gone wrong. His men brought me his gun and I told them to keep it. His funeral was a party, not celebrating his life, celebrating his leaving of us and the destruction he caused. Ethan and I looked at each for the first time with peace in our eyes. 

Ethan was the family member I was closest with. Two years younger than me we grew up as my family’s backbone. We were the two who looked the most alike too, with our straw blonde hair, hazel eyes, and tanned skin from working in the sun. We raised Lucas ourselves when my mother couldn’t and my father wouldn’t. Mason contributed a little bit with the money to keep our house but otherwise he was blowing the paychecks on pleasure. I got a job during my school years to try to provide something. The local hardware store needed someone to do the busy work and labor the owners were too old to do now. Twelve year old me would take the four dollars an hour they were willing to give me. Ethan spent his time making sure Lucas was taken care of in only ways he could. He was the one pulling Mason and my father apart and I was covering Lucas’s eyes in the corner. We had to kick the two of them out many times and when we couldn’t, I stood on the pegs of Ethan’s bike, with Lucas on my back, down to the church. 

My family never were faithfully religious. Sure we went to church for service, but so did every other family in Texas. I think my mother was the only one of us to have any faith in the higher power. I often heard my mother begging God to help her when she thought she was alone in a room. The church wasn’t a sacred place to us, it was somewhere to get away from the horror. Sit in the pews and listen to the priest preach things we know he didn’t mean. He was in my living room doing a line with my father after church on Sundays. He also was notably horrible to the Mexican kids in my town. Liana and Marcus had to hide when they slept there because he would chase them out with a cross. Calling them “dirty mutts”. He never bothered learning Spanish either so when my town started calling him “El hombre que se Cago en Dios” he had no idea we were saying “the man who shits on god.” My town is what it feels like to say the word “blasphemy”, dry and drawn-out. 

I hated Cornell, I swore he looked at my mother a little too longingly somedays.  My mother was gorgeous. Her long dark hair, gentle light eyes, soft smile that could make anyone feel a bit lighter in there. step. She was the definition of grace as her name implied. I threw a bottle at Cornell once when he got too close, and sneaked a hand under a table towards her. The other men at the table didn’t blink twice, but I knew it was wrong. I could feel daggers being shot at me from the eyes of the same men whose hands that touched me like that. He hit me pretty hard after that but Mason didn’t like that. Not that he cared whether I was hurt or not, just that Mason and him really hated each other. I don’t know what happened between the two of them but he was always so tense around him. After he hit me Mason took him out back and beat him in an inch of his life. We weren’t allowed to go to church after that. Tore Mama up but I managed to steal a rosary from my teacher at school and left it hanging on her door.  I don’t know how Ethan and I got Lucas out of here. He now lives in Helotes with his girlfriend Carol, and their daughter, Joyanne. I remember when he came home from school telling us he got a girl pregnant. I had grabbed the phone book searching for the planned parenthood clinic up north, ready to spend my last paycheck on gas to get them there. However they were determined to keep it at just seventeen. At this point Mason had died about three months before so we turned his old room into a nursery. Painting the dark walls that smelled like cigarettes white had to be some kind of karma. Carol got kicked out by her very religious parents and ended up living with us. I made sure to take the chainsaw I fixed up from the dump and cut their mailbox off its post at noon that next day. Not too much damage but enough to make my point in broad daylight. We went from a family of six to three to five. They finished their senior year with their newborn and ended up both getting into Texas State University. With the little money they saved up, a loan, and Ethan's and I’s salaries of a year we got them to get out of Sanderson. They are both finishing up their degrees soon and Joy is almost four. She looks just like her mother, dark hair, big golden eyes, freckled cheeks, and a laugh that could make anyone smile. 

Ethan is a teacher at the local high school. He runs the music department and is the music teacher. It doesn’t pay great but that is what I’m for. He always had a knack for music, taking music sheets and history of the classics from the library. Often we would have to pay for them because Papa would rip them up and throw them at us but we made do. It made him happy to have music. I got him a CD player for his sixteenth birthday with some of my signing bonus. Let him pick out a few CD’s after a trip into San Antonio. I always regret not trying harder to let him have a chance at being a kid. We all deserved a childhood and out of all of us, he spent that time fighting for his. We have done what we could do to keep the house up and running, all our bills on time for the first time in almost 20 years. 

Despite our attempts we still succumbed to the Thomas family illness of addiction. My father used drugs to shut up as kids. I had been smoking, drinking, and taking pills since I was barely 8. I hid it better than my siblings did, I didn’t want the two younger boys to see their sister struggling as much as I did. Ethan really had a rough time in his late teens with cocaine as it helped him get through the long days with Lucas and work on his own. However in a small victory we managed to never let Lucas get his hands on anything, Carol and him are clean. Now we do our best to stay away from drugs but it's hard when all you have done for 20 years is numb the pain. There is no therapy, no doctor, no one who can help you in this wild west. I have been on my own since day one and no doctor is gonna fix this. The desert is cruel. It makes you do things you promised you’d never do. The night, the fights, the scrapping up for just another hour of life pushed humans to the limit. Such a place was not made for us and you did the best you could with what you had.

My mother had been taking xanax for years, she did her best to hide it from my father so he wouldn’t steal them but one day I found it and mistook it for painkillers. I have been trying for twelve years to stop but it’s better than weed and alcohol. It gets me out of my head. I’m on a river, floating, watching the birds go over me. There is no noise, no movement, just languid water pushing me in the river. I can sleep, I can think, I can rest. Each thought that awakens just boards a leaf and goes downstream never to be seen again. It’s my way of coping, even if it kills me. 

I took too much when I was 20, Owens, my commander, found me on the floor in my room completely out of it. My eyes wouldn’t focus, couldn’t move the muscles around my mouth to form words, my bones were like jelly. He had to carry me to the med wing because I would just slump over. He tried to put me in rehab after that but I wouldn’t go. He couldn’t send me home either because I was the sole breadwinner at the time and that was a death sentence. Instead he chose to keep a closer eye on me and I got better about hiding it. I tried to stop it but it was hard when it was so beautifully numbing. The world was so cruel and after so many years of blinding white grief I needed to take the edge off.

Liana and Marcus finally managed to get a trailer and live in The Park at the east edge of town. We had found it up north a bit in the middle of nowhere. The thing was run down and beat up. The insides are full of mold and dry rotted wood. All the old plush walls and seats had fallen apart and become deflated. We tore the entire inside out and replaced the wood. I had some extra furniture from the barracks and some we found at the flea market and spiced the inside up a bit.  Liana works for the US Border Patrol Station trying to help kids crossing the border. She gets in contact with families who need to immigrate but are having a problem moving everyone. She’ll work with them to get the kids over and get them a placement until their parents can join them. Marcus joined the Marines right out of high school. He got stationed in the Middle East and I haven’t seen him for awhile. Letters he has sent me says he is well, fighting away from the frontlines. Desert storm has been hard on all of us and I couldn’t imagine being out there. We see each other when we can but life takes you down different paths. Maia moved out of Sanderson not too long ago, headed up to Oklahoma with a boy. I haven’t talked to her in 10 years, as soon as she could get out of Texas she did. I don’t blame her. Texas will eat you up and spit you back out. It’s one big rattlesnake's nest and one wrong step you are dead.

 When I was 19 in bootcamp we had a kid from the north come to train with us. He had never been to Texas. Didn’t understand that it’s not a place, it’s an entity. The desert is not forgiving to those who are foreign. We stumbled across a Western-Diamondback Rattlesnakes nest, I and the others knew to avoid but he stepped right into it. It was like every noise nature that could produce sound, sounded out at once. Cicadas, crickets, birds, coyotes, they all called out to the maker. I watched his blood sink into the desert sand. It poured from his eyes, nose, ears, any hole he could flow out of it. He twitched, calling out for his mom in short grumbles, the whites of his eyes popped out of his sockets as he convulsed. Then he was still, the world was still. Commander carried him back and was the one to call his mom. My heart flinched as it was the same way I cried for my mother when she died. The longing, the need, the love with nowhere to go. This is the land of free, free from tyranny not consequences. Watch your step. 

When I got the call a few mornings ago to head to base because a missing British soldier had crawled across the border, I was bewildered. A man from the north crossed the desert. Not just crossed, but pulling himself across the sand with his scarred hands. I sat in his hospital room in Val Verde Regional Medical Center being told the story he could conjure up to the guards at the gate. I got in contact with the British Embassy to phone his commander, and it turns out Major Vernon was MIA. I just fell down the rabbit hole, learning whatever I could about this man. His name was Simon Riley, 28, from Manchester, England. Oldest brother of two, past jobs included a butcher job for three years, and then 6 years of service joining right after 9/11. He had originally been KIA but after this discovery it was revoked.

He was cut up real good, several long lasting injuries that didn’t heal right. Slowly patching up scars all around his mouth and face, a huge hook-like cut on his chest and just general torture looked. His eyes were bloodshot and the gray in the middle appeared as a soft blue. His skin was ghostly pale for a man who crawled across the Coahuila Desert. He was very weak, and couldn’t stay awake for longer than a few minutes. 

Finally after a few days he woke up. Sitting up in the hospital bed he looks small for someone who is so tall. His face is constantly scanning the room as if someone is going to reach out and get him. He is shell-shocked to his core as if he was prey. However, there was this anger in his eyes when he was awake. It was white and hot, flashing in front of me when our gaze met. For someone who could barely move, his fury could move mountains. I recognized that anger, it’s what got me through eighteen years in that house in Sanderson.

“Well look what the cat dragged in all the way from Mexico,” I say as I push the curtains to his room open. He flinches and pulls at the cuffs keeping him in the bed. A groan escapes his lips as his muscles fight against his quick movements. “Now don’t hurt yourself there lad. Your identification says you are a lieutenant all the way across the Atlantic. Mr. Riley, how you ended up in my neck of the woods, safe to say I don’t want to know. How you crossed that desert in the middle of winter, I don’t want to know. We already contacted the commanding officer above your clearly dead Major Vernon. We will get you home as soon as you heal up a bit. Till then you are my responsibility, Soldier. Name’s Sergeant Master Evangeline Mae Thomas, my boys call me Evan.” 

[buddiesmutslut]

BEARDS ARE FLAMMABLE BUT BUCK IS A FIREFIGHTER.

OKay okay okay wait, I have a thought. Walk with me, bc -

Beards (as a gay man, using female partners to hide your queerness, "a disguise") are flammable (hello 7x10 finale, Eddie's life going up in flames as his son and girlfriend of several months walks in on him and Kim and then Chris moves away to Texas and doesn't talk to him for months), but Buck is a firefighter (when Eddie's life is in shambles, Buck is there to help. Wife just died and parents pressuring you about moving back to Texas at your shield ceremony? Buck will make his sister cut his pants up and hobble his ass down to the station despite the fact that he should resting. Get really traumatizing news and have a breakdown and scare your child and wreck your room? Buck comes running and looks after Chris and takes care of you and helps fix the mess you made. Life blown up bc your child caught you with your dead wife's (possibly clinically insane?) doppelganger and then calls his grandparents at 2am to take him back to Texas for God knows how long? Buck is there to try and convince him not to go, and then to hand the bag over and stand by your side when he can't.)

Buck is always in the room and beards may leave your life in ruins but he's always there to beat the flames back and help put the pieces back together.

[demona-andariel]

A Simple Act of Kindness - 1 / ??

Fandom: Texas Chainsaw Massacre (2003)

Pairing: Thomas Hewitt (Leatherface) x OFC

Summary: Elizabeth wakes up in a stranger's home. Her fate to become another victim of the Hewitt family is all but sealed till a simple act of kindness changes her life forever.

Warning: (Encompassing the whole story in no particular order) dead dove, rape/Noncon, violence, forced marriage, kidnapping, cannibalism, explicit sexual content, loss of virginity, angst

Author Note: Minors DNI!

Word Count: 3,298

Chapter 1 - The Hewitts

Her body was in pain. Elizabeth weakly opened her eyes, moaning as she did so. What had happened? She tried to sit up, only for her body to scream at her. Last she remembered… 

“Well hello, dear,” an older woman said. Her voice attempted to sound cheery and soothing. 

For some reason, Elizabeth felt the hairs on the back of her neck stand up. “Where… where am I?” she asked weakly as she tried to sit up again.

“Now, don’t try to get yourself all worked up,” the woman said as she sat down on the couch that Elizabeth lay on. “I’m afraid you were in an accident.”

“I was?” Elizabeth asked, frowning as she ignored the woman’s advice and sat up. Her head throbbed at her movement. The woman set down a cup of tea in front of her. She frowned as she tried to recall.

“Yes, my son, Thomas, found you, brought you back here. Your boyfriend was taken to our local clinic. Unfortunately, we have one doctor and the nearest hospital is too far away to transport you both easily. The doctor said you would be fine,” the woman said, nudging the cup of tea closer to Elizabeth. 

Elizabeth nodded her head, then frowned. “Boyfriend?” 

“The young man traveling with you of course,” the woman said, sweetly.

“Oh, he’s not my boyfriend,” she replied weakly. For some reason, the woman’s words both made and didn’t make sense.  Why would they bring her to their home and not a hospital if she were in an accident? “If it’s not too much trouble. I would appreciate it if you could take me to our car.”

The front door was pulled open then slammed shut, causing Elizabeth to jump. Heavy footsteps stomped through the hallway. 

“Thomas, honey!” the woman shouted. 

A tall figure appeared in the doorway. Elizabeth couldn’t help but let out a surprised gasp and look away from the man. There was something very off about his face. He was the biggest man she’d ever seen. She felt entirely intimidated and couldn’t look at him. As if sensing her discomfort, he turned and left.

“I’m sorry, dear,” the woman said. Her voice was hostile. Elizabeth couldn’t blame her.

“No, I’m sorry,” Elizabeth said. “I think I’m still trying to make sense of things. I’m sorry, I’m so rude. My name is Elizabeth.”

“You can call me Luda Mae,” the woman said. “It’s about dinner time. How about you stay for dinner and after Thomas can take you to your car.”

Elizabeth smiled. “Okay,” she said, not wanting to be more of a problem. Although every fiber of her being wanted to leave the house. Wanted to get back on the road. But, the car didn’t belong to her. Hopefully, Jason wasn’t as badly injured as Luda Mae claimed. “Can I help you set up the table? It’s the least I can do.”

Luda Mae let out a hollow smile. “Are you sure? You’re-”

“Being an absolute bother,” Elizabeth interrupted as she got up. “The least I can do for you taking me in after the accident.”

Luda Mae led her to the kitchen, giving her the plates and silverware. Elizabeth was careful as she set up the table. There was something wrong with the situation she was in. But she couldn’t quite figure it out. Luda Mae claimed she was in an accident, and the soreness in her body seemed to confirm it. 

Still, her senses were telling her to leave. The sound of a car pulling up caught her attention. She looked out the window and saw a cop car. Relief filled her. Having an officer of the law in the house that was giving her creeps just made her relax.

“I’m starving!” the man shouted as he walked through the house. He stepped into the dining room and stopped the moment he spotted her. “Well, well. And who are you?”

“A guest of ours,” Luda Mae interrupted as she brought out a pot seemingly full of stew. Elizabeth rushed over to Luda Mae to take the pot from her. 

“Really,” the officer let out a lecherous smile, sending chills down Elizabeth’s spine. She no longer felt safe. “I’m Sheriff Winston Hoyt.” 

“Elizabeth,” she said. “Umm. It seems like we were in an accident. Do you know where our car could be?”

Hoyt’s eyes rose. “Ah yes. The car accident,” he said with a nod. “I do believe your boyfriend is hanging around somewhere.”

“Not my boyfriend,” Elizabeth corrected, unsure why she was so annoyed by the assumption. “But, he’s not badly injured is he?”

Hoyt shrugged. “I think we can arrange for you to see him,” he said.

“After dinner!” Luda Mae stated as she walked back into the room with more plates of food. Elizabeth helped her by taking some of the plates again. “Thomas! Dinner! Sit there, dear.”

Elizabeth followed what Luda Mae told her to do. Hoyt kept leering at her, while he sat down opposite of her. She gulped and looked away. Why did she feel like a trap was set around her? A shadow out of the corner of her eye surprised her. She turned to the door and watched Thomas, taking him in. He wore an ugly mask, it looked almost human, but it couldn’t be. Considering where they were, she could imagine him finding some animal and skinning it to try and make a mask. Maybe his face was disfigured.

He paused as their eyes met. Fear? There was fear in his eyes. 

“Thomas, why don’t you sit next to our guest?” Luda Mae said. Although it was made to be a question, she was commanding him. 

Thomas hesitated a moment before he walked to the seat next to her. He paused for another moment then sat down. Hoyt brought in an older man and sat him by the table.

“Good, now, let’s say grace,” Luda Mae said. “Hoyt?”

Elizabeth didn’t hear the prayer as she thought. She had no right to judge them. Sure, they made her uncomfortable, but that was just her own prejudice. 

“Amen,” Luda Mae said, interrupting Elizabeth’s musing. The family began to dig into the meal, passing the plates of food around as Luda Mae poured out the stew into a bowl. 

“Is this meat?” Elizabeth asked curiously, as she poked at the stew.

“Well, of course, dear,” Luda Mae said with a wide smile. 

“Oh, sorry. I can’t eat meat.”

The family stopped and stared at her. She gulped and hunched trying to look as small as possible. “It doesn’t sit well with me,” she said softly. “I’m sorry. I’m allergic to it.” It was a lie, but they didn’t need to know that. She just wasn’t a meat-eater. She never could stomach the taste of it. She hated the idea that something had to die.

“Probably not this meat,” Luda Mae said, that same smile, but there was something else in her eyes. Something evil.

Elizabeth shook her head. “I’d rather not. Last time, I almost died.” Another lie, but some people were allergic to meat.

The family looked at each other as if silently communicating. 

“It’s alright, dear,” Luda Mae said as she took the bowl away, leaving her with only a little bit of salad.  

They ate in silence. Elizabeth carefully picked at her food, not wanting to offend anyone, but she wasn’t entirely hungry either. She slowly eyed everyone. Taking in their appearances. It was hard not to judge them. It was hard not to think they were barely educated if at all. Hard not for the back of her mind to think they were depraved in some way. 

Hoyt continued to give her a lecherous smile. She looked away, suddenly grateful that Thomas would be the one to take her to the crashed car.

Her eyes fell on Thomas, who sat to her right. He was so big he was almost touching her. He seemed to feel her gaze as he slowly hunched almost as if he were trying to make himself smaller. As if he were afraid of her. 

“I need to apologize,” Elizabeth said softly to Thomas. The large man slowly turned his head, meeting her eyes for a moment before looking away. There was a softness in his eyes, but also fear. “No,” Elizabeth said, shaking her head and placing her hand on Thomas’ arm. He looked at her sharply, making her pull her hand away. She gulped, her eyes starting to water. What he must have gone through to fear the touch of a stranger.

“Is everything alright?” Luda Mae asked, her voice pretending to be sweet but there was some hostility. 

Elizabeth nodded as she wiped her eyes. “I’m sorry. It’s me. I just-” she paused, unsure of how to put her words together to not insult them. “I’m sorry I looked away earlier so quickly. I wasn’t trying to be rude. I was just, umm… unprepared. I’m sure it hasn’t been easy and that a lot of people look away.”

The whole family paused and watched her. 

Luda Mae’s face slightly softened. “Why do you say that?”

Elizabeth fidgeted. “I-” she tried to find the right words. She had a feeling that the large man next to her had suffered greatly to be wearing that hideous mask. He seemed like a lonely soul, who had to deal with the cruel world on his own. Even with his family, there was only so much they could do. She knew. She understood. “Because people are cruel to those who are different.” She paused as the family continued to stare at her. Oh, she didn’t want to do this. But it seemed like she had to keep going. She looked back at Thomas, pretending that he wasn’t wearing a mask as she let out a sad smile. 

“I know to some extent what you had to go through. Kids are cruel. We had a house fire when I was a teen. My little brother wasn’t so fortunate to get out as quickly as the rest of us did.” She coughed to cover up the crack in her voice. Tears came to her eyes and she looked down at her food, hoping that nobody would notice. “He was horribly burned and it disfigured him. I hated the way people looked at him, whenever we were out in public.” She shook her head. “He had such a kind and gentle soul, but people only saw him as a monster because he looked different.” She snorted at a memory and looked at Thomas, who met her with curious, confused eyes. “I used to get in a lot of trouble as a teen, always picking fights with anyone who tried to wound him with words.” 

She sat up, feeling a little bit giddy. “So, here’s the thing. I realized that some of us may look pretty on the outside, but ugly on the inside and vice versa. But, there are those of us who might look pretty on the outside and still have some flaws.” She pulled up her right long sleeve, revealing a decent scar from the burn she’d received on her forearm. He reached toward her arm, touching her scar. 

She let out a cry of pain, causing him to quickly pull his hand back. “I’m sorry,” she quickly apologized, through a light chuckle. “I’m so sorry. People always get super curious and touch my scars without asking. I’ve just learned to frighten them by pretending it hurts me. It doesn’t. At all. I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have done it.” She laughed, shaking her head. Thomas’ eyes lightened and he let out a little laugh, then looked over at Luda Mae. 

“I’m so sorry, dear,” Luda Mae said softly, this time there was a sweetness to her voice. “Your brother?”

Elizabeth paused, feeling her tears return. She still hadn’t completely dealt with her feelings. “Sorry,” she said as she took a napkin and wiped her eyes then nose. “He died a couple of weeks ago. That’s why I went on this road trip. I needed to clear my head. Figure out what to do with my life. I am on my way to visit my aunt.”

“And your parents? Boyfriend?” Luda Mae asked. 

Elizabeth barked out a laugh, shaking her head. “My parents might as well be dead. They kicked me out of the house at eighteen and tried to send my brother to who knows where. I was able to get custody of him and I took care of him these last three years.” She paused. It was an unfortunate relief that her brother had gotten sick and died. She loved and cared so very deeply for him. But he was in so much pain and it was hard being unable to do anything to help. Glancing up at the family, she let out a bitter smile. Those feelings had to stay hidden. “But, as for a boyfriend, psh,” she shrugged. “It’s hard to find a guy that was willing to help with care. My brother required a lot of time and attention and care. And considering my age,” she shrugged again. “Most guys aren’t ready for that responsibility, just wanting sex. So I stopped trying. But the rest of my family are alright. They didn’t condone what my parents did and helped support me and my brother financially.”

Finally, looking back at them, she caught Luda Mae’s thoughtful gaze. She turned to look at Thomas who was watching her. “So, umm... I just needed to apologize for earlier. And sorry for being such a downer. Oh my god,” Elizabeth switched her tone to sound lighter and happier even though she didn’t feel it. “Maybe, you can tell me a little bit about this place?” she asked as she took a sip of the tea in front of her.

Luda Mae’s heart beat wildly, but she kept her composer. What kind of luck did they have? When Thomas had brought the unconscious barely injured young woman into the house she was angry. The woman wasn’t a bad catch and would feed them for a short while. She was angry about the beauty. Perfect long straight dark brown hair. Tanned, smoothed, soft skin on every part of her that was revealed. She probably never worked a day in her life, having mommy and daddy supply for her. Her breasts were practically the perfect size, making the shirt she wore hugged her form. She wasn’t fat and looked physically fit. This woman probably had a really easy life due to her looks. She could probably charm anyone. Interestingly, she wore a long sleeve shirt and jeans, clearly, she must have come from the north.

And, looking at Thomas, Luda Mae could see he was already enchanted. Silly, stupid boy. When would he learn that these kinds of women would never see him as anything other than a monster? As much as she hated to do it, she decided to teach him a lesson. That their family were the only ones who could love and care for him. That beauty on the outside only meant ugliness on the inside.

She’s ordered her family to be on their best behavior. Slightly wary of Hoyt’s behavior, but not enough to reprimand him completely.  They were going to have dinner with this girl. Before dinner, she’d done the thing that Luda Mae had expected. She’d seen Thomas and then looked away. He noticed it and Luda Mae had seen his shoulders slump. She almost called it off, but Thomas had to learn. She purposefully sat the two next to each other. There was little doubt in her mind the girl would show her contempt.

And then that damn bitch surprised her.

Although timid and shy initially, the girl apologized to Thomas, touching him without fear and with such tenderness. It caught them all off guard. Revealing her life story only helped her out more. She had compassion. She knew what it was like because of her family. Thomas had looked at Luda Mae, giving her eyes of concern and worry. He didn’t want them to kill this one. She couldn’t have agreed more. 

But there was still a little bit of worry. A girl as beautiful as she was had to have people looking for her eventually. To Luda Mae’s surprise, amazement and happiness, the girl wasn’t going to be missed. She had no real family. The young man that was also taken had only been an acquaintance. Not a boyfriend or husband or anything. 

Luda Mae looked at her son. He was watching Elizabeth. He had that look in his eyes of lust. But of course, he did. He was after all a man with needs. Unfortunately, no woman would give him a chance. And her son was no rapist. Elizabeth seemed oblivious to the looks Thomas was giving her. Luda Mae’s heart beat faster. Her boy was going to be a father. She couldn’t wait. 

Yes, Elizabeth had unknowingly saved her own life. She’d given them all a good reason why they should keep her alive.

Luda Mae had looked at her son, eyes filled with pride and joy and happiness for the reward he was about to receive. After all he’d done for his family, he deserved this. 

Elizabeth swayed. “Are you feeling alright, dearie?” she asked.

Elizabeth nodded. “I just got a little light-headed.”

Thomas looked at Luda Mae in concern. 

“Well you have had quite the day,” Luda Mae said tenderly.

“I-” Elizabeth fell forward, but Thomas caught her before she could hit the table.

“Thomas, why don’t you take her upstairs to the guest bedroom,” Luda Mae commanded. He let out a sigh, lowering his eyes. He picked up her unconscious body and started to head towards the door. “Actually,” Luda Mae said, “why not take her to your room. It’ll be nicer, cozier for her there.”

Thomas looked at her in surprise. He glanced down at the basement for a moment. “No dear,” Luda Mae said with a shake of her head. “I think she’d be far happier in one of the rooms upstairs. Besides, you’ll no longer be a bachelor. Can’t have you living in the basement.”

Thomas’s eyes widened. He looked down at the unconscious woman in his arms then back at Luda Mae. She gave him an encouraging smile and nod. 

His eyes sparkled as he lifted her up higher to carry her closer.

“What are you doing?” Hoyt asked the moment Thomas was out of earshot. “That bitch-”

“You heard the girl, didn’t you?” Luda Mae snapped at him. “Didn’t you see the way she looked at him? How she touched him without fear. Stay away from her, Hoyt. She belongs to Thomas.”

“But she doesn’t even eat meat,” Hoyt snarled. She gave him a side-eyed glance. 

“I know what you want. If and only if Thomas lets you. You will have to ask him. That is my demand and you will follow my orders.”

Hoyt opened his mouth to protest then shut it again. “You’re setting the boy up for heartbreak,” he stated, eyes filled with anger and annoyance.

She shook her head. “I’m setting him up to become a father. Now, be sure to get the rest of their items out of the car. I want her stuff here with us.”

Hoyt let out an exasperated sigh but nodded his head. “Alright, I’ll do it. Best bring Thomas with me.”

Luda Mae nodded. “Don’t keep him out too late and don’t overwork him. The sooner he claims her, the better for all of us. She needs a family. One who will care for her. She’ll soon realize that is us.”

Hoyt rolled his eyes but walked out of the dining room. “Thomas!” he shouted. “Come with me!”

Luda Mae watched the two men leave, heart beating with anticipation. She was going to make sure Elizabeth was ready and beautiful for her boy. She couldn’t wait to hear the sound of little feet running through the house again.

Chapter 2 - Mine

[iturmom]

my symptoms were only a little neck soreness for like a week, but since yesterday morning they have rapidly progressed. i could not sleep through the nausea and the neck/brain discomfort but whenever i did fall asleep i immediately woke back up because i wasn't breathing! i've developed a headache and i finally vomited at 7- only saliva and a single fully in tact piece of carrot from 18 hours ago so i guess my stomach has stopped digesting my food- and also that's not the most recent thing i've eaten either. i wanted to go to the clinic at the homeless shelter but i don't feel well enough to walk to the bus stop so i tried to get a lyft (i have an apartment now through permanent supportive housing) but they require two forms of payment so i missed the available appointments until 1pm bc it's first come first serve. i don't want to go to an er bc i would be bankrupted. i don't know how i'll get there on the bus. ambulance is out of the question. maybe i should swallow my pride and ask my friend for help even though she's probably busy. i don't even know if the clinic can help me but i can't go to an er! because my fucking governor is in a fucking wheelchair and he thinks disabled people deserve to die because poor people don't deserve health care. and he's allowed to just risk all of the lives of the poor in texas because no one will stop him

[geek-fashionista]

Lately, I have been… stressed. Work stuff, wedding stuff, trying to be ready for my short trip to Texas this week. I was coming home from work and doing a million things on top of writing 1000+ words a day.

So was it any surprise when my throat started feeling irritated on Wednesday? Stress enough and it’s bound to catch up with you physically.

Between Wednesday night and Thursday night, I had a 24-hour fever that was so bad I became bedridden and completely lost my appetite. My fiancé came into the room with a bowl of soup and found me staring miserably at the bread, water, and Tylenol he’d brought me twenty minutes before. I started wondering if I should go to the hospital.

AND THEN I was like, hold on, I’m a woman of faith, I don’t need to live this way. So I told my fiancé to bring me the anointed oil on the kitchen counter. He comes back and sits with me as I dab some on my throbbing head, my pill-wrecked stomach, my sore throat, my aching back, and start praying for healing.

Immediately, chills. Within a few minutes, the fever is moving out of my head. My limbs overheat. I start sweating for the first time that day. Then the heat leaves my arms. I eat a little bit of the soup that’s gotten cold. A few minutes later, I’m out of bed. A while after that, the heat has completely left my body. And then the pain stops.

Within an hour of praying over myself, I’m walking around the apartment, energetically cracking jokes. God is good.

The following morning, no fever but my throat feels pretty gross. I ask my supervisor if I can work remotely and he agrees. I get maybe half an hour of work done before I recoil at my own fuzzy tonsils and decide to flash a light in my mouth. The sight of my throat has me dropping everything to find the nearest urgent care clinic.

One awful strep test later, it came back negative, but I took the rest of the day off because my head was aching and I needed to rest.

Rest and not worry about the things that still need to be done. Rest and be taken care of instead of trying to take care of everything myself. (I do hate that I’ve been unable to write.)

Our honeymoon hotel is paid off. Our rental car is reserved. I had to reschedule my final dress fitting for tomorrow, but my soon to be mother-in-law and possibly sister-in-law will be joining me for it. My fiancé’s grandfather sent us a generous amount of money that will almost pay off the mattress that’s getting delivered today.

Everything is going well. Everything will be fine. I just need to focus now on recovering.

[justcallmebunn]

TW: ideation, trauma dumping

As someone whos been clinically depressed for just about half their lives, it's not easy to forget that I didn't think I'd make it to 18.

18 for a long time was just a goal. Like the minimum amount of time I had to exist to absolve my family of all guilt and all culpability.

Step 1 was moving out. Step 2 was becoming self sufficient. Step 3 was reaching out less and less. Step 4-- ??? TBD

That way no one would be too concerned when they didn't hear from me for a good chunk of time. I don't know what I thought would happen? I think I thought about it like boiling a frog. People would be so unused to hearing from me that it would be less of a shock when they realized they just never would hear from me again.

That's the thing I think that people don't get about ideation. It's not like we just picture ways we would like to go and then choose. It's a lot more like being on a conveyor belt and just knowing something is coming and you're just foreseeing the different ways it could go. As time goes on you either become less sure and seek help or you move forward.

I got help eventually. I don't know what made me want the help really. It's not like I had some major epiphany or anything. I was just so tired and worn out and I wanted to be more comfortable. I wanted to not always feel like my heart was dripping out of my chest and like I was drowning. And that helped for a while.

And then bad thing after bad thing happened and for like 2 years it was like I'd entered my own personal hell. I was sure that I was not going to make it to 25 and was sure that I'd actually just stop existing. Pictured it countless times especially when the daily panic attacks started along with the self harm again.

It was Valentine's day that year. I had ordered food for my girlfriend and I and was going to make it a whole thing. She was in there with her ex, who lived with me because he was in a rough situation and genuinely not a bad guy. Either way they were supposed to be over. I'm poly and was open about it even then, so it's not even like she didn't have the option to open up the relationship. All she had to do was talk to me but she swore up and down that there wasn't anything between them anymore. And I stepped outside briefly for a cig. I was gone maybe like 20 minutes and I go back in and they were going at it. I just lost it. Ran out the door and just walked aimlessly around campus and contemplated a few different endings for myself. They reached out almost immediately and for 40 minutes I was fairly certain I was done.

Then there was this man. He'd come back from service and was a bit older than us. Controlling, manipulative, the whole nine yards. Not only did he assault me, he made me feel bad about it too lol. He abused his underage girlfriend (which thanks to Texas' Romeo and Juliet law, he couldn't get in trouble for because he was RIGHT at the cusp of the legal boundary) nonstop and terrorized the girls on our campus. Upheaved my life for 2 years and turned me into the bad guy in our circles because obviously I gave off "mixed signals". For a solid week I contemplated just disappearing.

Then there was another man. It was unhealthy from the start. I didn't know about relationships as self harm back then. The depravity of that relationship still horrifies me. I have flashbacks now, from a moment when we were in the middle of a scene. I safeworded because I couldn't breathe and he didn't stop and said I didn't deserve it. After the initial panic, my brain shut off and I thought he was going to take care of it for me. I was shaking after that and still spent the rest of the 24 hours I'd planned to spend with him because I was outside my own body and couldn't deal. Another Valentine's day well spent. Once I broke off that relationship, I was inconsolable because I couldn't reconcile everything that had happened till that point. 2 attempts later and I yeeted myself into counseling that time. It helped.

And then everything exploded again. My ex went off the deep end and dragged me down with her. I lost it on a university employee and voiced my ideation for the first time and got sent to the grippy sock place.

6 years later and a decade from what I thought was going to be my original expiration date and I'm still amazed that I'm here honestly. I don't buy into the whole every day is a blessing thing. But I am always kind of amazed at the stuff I would've missed out on if I'd ever been successful. I'm still clinically depressed, off my meds and coping rather than thriving but life is better than I thought it would be. It's a lot more bearable than it used to be and there are days where the light shines so bright I don't know what I've done to deserve the good in my life.

Life is so strange. But here's to being 10 years later from what I'd considered to be my final act.

TLDR: Don't give up. It's hard and it sucks but it does get better.

[urgentcareoftx]

Urgent Care of Texas is now offering Specialist Urgent Care Services Dedicated affiliated specialists ensuring continuity of care at the highest levels. This can be either an ongoing relationship or a temporary arrangement until the problem has been resolved.

[alicevgcna]

Open Your Future: The Comprehensive Guide to Online CNA Training in 2023

Unlock Your Future: The Comprehensive Guide to Online CNA Training in 2023

The healthcare field continues to expand, presenting numerous opportunities for career advancement and personal growth. One pivotal ‌role in this sector is that of a Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA). If you’re considering a rewarding ⁤career in healthcare, online CNA‌ training could be the perfect start. In this ‍comprehensive‍ guide, ⁤we’ll ​explore everything you ‌need to know about⁣ online ‌CNA⁢ training in 2023 to help you unlock your future.

What is a ⁤CNA?

A Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) provides essential ‍care to patients under the supervision of ​registered nurses (RNs) and licensed practical nurses‌ (LPNs). Their responsibilities include:

Assisting patients⁣ with daily living activities

Monitoring patients’‍ vitals

Providing emotional support

Ensuring ⁤patient comfort and ‍safety

Why Choose Online CNA Training?

Online CNA training programs⁢ offer flexibility‍ and convenience ‌that traditional on-site training may not provide. Here are some benefits:

Flexible Scheduling: Study at your own pace and ⁤fit your coursework around⁣ your other commitments.

Accessibility: Access ‌course materials ⁣from anywhere,‍ making it easier for those living in remote areas to pursue their⁣ training.

Cost-effective: Online courses often have lower tuition ⁣fees and can save on travel costs.

Requirements for Online CNA Training

Before enrolling in an ⁤online ‍CNA training program, ⁢you should be aware of ⁣the following requirements:

Minimum age of 18 years

A high school diploma or GED

Criminal background check

Some programs may require immunizations or health records

How to Choose the Right Online CNA Program

Selecting the right program is ​crucial for your training⁤ and career. Here are some factors to consider:

Accreditation: ⁢Ensure‌ the ⁤program‌ is accredited by a recognized body.

Curriculum: Review⁢ the curriculum to ensure it covers all ⁤necessary topics.

Clinical Experience: Find out ‌how‍ and where clinical training ⁣will be conducted.

Student Support: Assess the support services available to students, including tutoring‌ and career ​counseling.

Steps to Enroll‌ in an Online CNA Training Program

Here’s how to get started on your journey:

Research accredited ⁤online CNA programs.

Compare curricula, costs, and student support services.

Submit your application along with required documents.

Complete any required pre-requisite courses or assessments.

Enroll and begin your coursework!

A Day in⁣ the Life of a CNA

Let’s ​delve ⁣into‌ a typical day for⁤ a‍ CNA to give​ you ‍a clearer picture of what to expect:

Time

Activity

7:00 AM

Treatment and care for patients,​ checking vitals.

9:00 AM

Assist with walking and eating.

12:00⁤ PM

Lunchtime monitoring and assistance.

3:00 PM

Document patient‍ behaviors and report ⁢to nurses.

5:00 PM

Prepare patients for‌ rest, communicating updates.

First-Hand Experience: A CNA’s Perspective

Many CNAs find their work to be both challenging and rewarding. Sarah, a CNA based in Texas, shares ‍her journey:

“I chose⁣ to become a CNA because I wanted to make a difference in people’s lives. The online training was perfect for me, as I ‍could ​balance‌ my job, family, and studies. I feel fulfilled⁤ knowing that I help improve the​ quality of life for patients daily.”

Practical Tips for Success in Online CNA Training

To make the most of your online⁤ training experience, consider these practical tips:

Establish a⁣ dedicated ‍study space free of distractions.

Create a study schedule⁢ and stick⁢ to it.

Engage with instructors and peers through‌ forums and discussion boards.

Utilize additional ⁣resources like videos and practice exams to reinforce learning.

Conclusion

Embarking on a career as a Certified‌ Nursing Assistant can be a fulfilling​ journey that impacts the lives of many individuals. With the flexibility and accessibility of⁢ online CNA training programs in 2023, achieving your ⁣career goals has never⁤ been easier. By understanding the requirements, selecting the right program, and following a structured path, ⁢you‌ can unlock a rewarding future in healthcare. ‍Start⁤ your journey today and take the first ‌step toward making ⁣a difference!

https://cnaclassesonline.net/open-your-future-the-comprehensive-guide-to-online-cna-training-in-2023/

[allcnaprograms]

Leading CNA Schools in Houston, Texas: Your Guide to a Rewarding Healthcare Career

Top⁣ CNA ‌Schools in Houston, Texas: Your Guide‍ to a Rewarding Healthcare⁢ Career

If you are considering a rewarding career ‌in healthcare, becoming a Certified Nursing Assistant ⁤(CNA) in Houston, Texas, is a fantastic⁣ choice. With‍ a ‍growing ⁣demand‍ for healthcare professionals, CNA certification provides a pathway into a fulfilling​ role ‍within ⁢the medical field. ‌This comprehensive guide ‌will walk you through the‌ top CNA ⁣schools in Houston, the​ benefits of ‍pursuing this career option, and practical tips to help you succeed.

Why Choose a Career ​as a CNA?

Job‍ Stability: The healthcare sector continues to expand, ensuring an ongoing need for CNAs.

Hands-On Experience: You’ll gain​ invaluable​ experience ‍caring for​ patients, which is crucial if you plan to‍ advance in the healthcare field.

Flexible Hours: ⁣ Many healthcare facilities offer flexible shifts, making it easier⁣ to balance work and life.

Opportunity for Advancement: CNAs⁤ can progress to roles such ‌as LPNs ‌or RNs with further ‍training and education.

A Closer Look at⁤ CNA Training Programs⁣ in Houston

The ‌CNA training programs are designed to equip you with the skills necessary‍ to provide high-quality patient⁢ care. These programs often include a mix of ​classroom instruction and‌ practical clinical experience. Below, we outline some of the‍ top CNA schools ​in Houston:

School Name

Program⁣ Length

Location

Tuition Fees

Houston ⁢Community College

4-8 weeks

Multiple Campuses

$1,200

Fortis Institute

4 months

West Houston

$1,610

Galena‌ Park ‍ISD

7 weeks

Galena Park

$800

Caregiver‍ Training Institute

6 weeks

Houston‍ Medical ‍Center

$1,200

Alvin Community College

5 weeks

Alvin, TX

$1,000

What to Look for in a CNA School

When choosing a CNA ‌school, consider the following factors:

Accreditation: Ensure the program meets state requirements and ⁣has a good reputation.

Facilities: Access to modern training facilities and equipment is crucial‌ for ⁤your learning.

Clinical Experience: ⁤A program that offers hands-on training through clinical rotations ⁤will better prepare you for real-world scenarios.

Graduation and Placement ‍Rates: Research the school’s success rates in terms of student graduation and job placement.

Practical Tips for Success in Your CNA​ Program

Embarking on your CNA training can ⁣be ⁢both exciting and intimidating. Here are⁣ some ‌practical tips to help you along the⁣ way:

Stay ⁣Organized: ‌ Keep track of your assignments ‍and​ schedule​ to ⁤manage your time ⁣effectively.

Participate Actively: ⁢Engage ​in class discussions and⁢ ask questions. This will enhance your⁢ learning experience.

Network: Connect with instructors and fellow students for support and potential​ job leads after graduation.

Practice Skills: ⁢ Take advantage⁢ of any practice labs or extra sessions to hone your​ clinical ‍skills.

First-Hand Experience: A CNA’s ​Journey

To provide an intimate perspective, we spoke with Jane Doe, a CNA graduate from Houston Community College:

“Becoming a CNA has been ⁢one of the most rewarding choices I’ve made in my life. The training at HCC‌ was intense⁢ but very ‌informative. The instructors genuinely cared about our success. I felt prepared to jump ‍straight into the workforce after⁣ graduation, and I couldn’t ‌be happier in my ‌role⁤ caring for patients.” -‌ Jane Doe

Conclusion

Choosing to become a CNA in Houston, Texas, is ​a commendable⁢ decision that ​opens doors to numerous opportunities in healthcare. With several excellent CNA schools in the⁤ area, you ‌have many options to kick-start⁢ your career. Remember ‍to consider​ factors such as program accreditation, practical training, and your personal goals. By following the tips provided and immersing yourself fully ‌in your studies, you’ll be well⁤ on your way ⁤to making⁣ a ‍difference in the lives of your patients and enjoying⁢ a fulfilling career⁣ in healthcare.

https://allcnaprograms.com/leading-cna-schools-in-houston-texas-your-guide-to-a-rewarding-healthcare-career/

[queersatanic]

The above as text (via @wheredowegoshow):

“If I had a dollar for health care I’d rather spend it on a baby or innocent person with some defect or illness not of their own responsibility; not some person with AIDS” says the health-care official on national television and this is in the middle of an hour-long video of people dying on camera because they can’t afford the limited drugs available that might extend their lives and I can’t even remember what this official looked like because I reached in through the tv screen and ripped his face in half and I was diagnosed with AIDS recently and this was after the last few years of losing count of the friends and neighbors who have been dying slow vicious and unnecessary deaths because fags and dykes and junkies are expendable in this country. “If you want to stop AIDS shoot the queers…” says a politician in Texas on the radio and his press secretary later claims that the politician was only joking and didn’t know the microphone was turned on and besides they didn’t think it would hurt his chances for reelection anyways and I wake up every morning in this killing machine called america and I’m carrying this rage like a blood-filled egg and there’s a thin line between the inside and the outside a thin line between thought and action and that line is simply made up of blood and muscle and bone and I’m waking up more and more from daydreams of tipping amazonian blow darts in “infected blood” and spitting them at the exposed necklines of certain politicians or government health-care officials or those thinly disguised walking swastikas that wear religious garments over their murderous intentions or those rabid strangers parading against AIDS clinics in the nightly news suburbs there’s a thin line a very thin line between the inside and the outside and I’ve been looking all my life at the signs surrounding us in the media or on peoples’ lips; the religious types outside st. patrick’s cathedral shouting to the men and women in the gay parade, “You won’t be here next year-you’ll get AIDS and die ha ha…” and the areas of the u.s.a. where it is possible to murder a man and when brought to trial one only has to say that the victim was a queer and that he tried to touch you and the courts will set you free and the difficulties that a bunch of republican senators have in albany with supporting an antiviolence bill that includes “sexual orientation” as a category of crime victims there’s a thin line a very thin line and as each T-cell disappears from my body it’s replaced by ten pounds of pressure ten pounds of rage and I focus that rage into nonviolent resistance but that focus is starting to slip my hands are beginning to move independent of self-restraint and the egg is starting to crack america america america seems to understand and accept murder as a self-defense against those who would murder other people and it’s been murder on a daily basis for nine count then nine long years and we’re expected to pay taxes to support this public and social murder and we’re expected to quietly and politely make house in this windstorm of murder but I say there’s certain politicians that had better increase their security forces and there’s religious leaders and health-care officials that had better get bigger fucking dogs and higher fucking fences and more complex security alarms for their homes and queer-bashers better start doing their work from inside howitzer tanks because the thin line between the inside and the outside is beginning to erode and at the moment I’m a thirty-seven-foot-tall one-thousand-one-hundred-and-seventy-two-pound man inside this six-foot body and all I can feel is the pressure all I can feel is the pressure and the need for release

-David Wojnarowicz DO NOT DOUBT THE DANGEROUSNESS OF THE 12-INCHPOLITICIAN, Close to the Knives: A Memoir of Disintegration, pp. 160-162, excerpt from. (The full essay was derived from talks delivered at Illinois State University at Normal, Illinois, and the University of the Arts in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in 1990.)

david wojnarowicz, close to the knives 

[mayaduffphleb]

Open Your Future: A Step-by-Step Guide to Getting Your Phlebotomy License

Unlock Your Future: A Step-by-Step⁤ Guide to Getting Your Phlebotomy License

Are ​you‍ considering a rewarding career in healthcare? If so, obtaining a phlebotomy license could be your‍ gateway to an exciting ⁢profession. This step-by-step guide will walk you through ⁢the process of getting your phlebotomy​ license, the benefits ‍of being‍ a certified phlebotomist, and practical tips to‍ help you succeed. Let’s dive in!

Understanding Phlebotomy

Phlebotomy is a critical procedure within the medical field that ‍involves drawing blood ‍from patients for tests, transfusions, or donations. As‌ a phlebotomist, you will work in hospitals, clinics, blood donation‌ facilities, and laboratories, directly impacting patient care.

Step 1: Research State Requirements

The ⁢first step to becoming a licensed phlebotomist is to research‍ the specific requirements for your state or country. Each​ region has its own regulations⁤ regarding education, training⁤ hours, and licensing procedures. Here’s a quick ⁤overview:

State

Education Requirements

Certification Exam

California

Completion of a phlebotomy training program

State Certification Exam

Texas

Completion of training and clinical experience

National Certification Exam

Florida

Completion of an accredited program

National‌ Certification Exam

Step ⁤2: Complete Phlebotomy ‍Training Program

Enroll ‍in a phlebotomy training program accredited by a recognized accrediting body. Training programs⁢ typically include‌ both classroom instruction​ and​ hands-on clinical experience. Topics you will cover include:

Blood⁢ collection techniques

Patient ⁢interaction and communication ​skills

Safety protocols and infection control

Anatomy and⁢ physiology of the circulatory system

Step 3:⁤ Obtain Clinical Experience

Most​ states require a certain number of clinical hours before you can take your certification​ exam. During your clinical rotations, ⁣you will practice ‍drawing blood under the supervision of experienced professionals. Be sure to utilize this hands-on experience to refine your skills.

Step 4: Take a Certification Exam

Once ⁣you have completed your training and clinical hours, it’s time to take your certification exam. The following are popular certification organizations:

American Society for Clinical Pathology (ASCP)

National Phlebotomy Association (NPA)

American ​Medical Technologists (AMT)

Be sure to review the exam format and study⁣ thoroughly to ensure you pass on your first attempt. Many organizations offer practice exams to help prepare you.

Step 5: Apply for Your License

After passing ​your certification exam,⁣ you can now apply for a phlebotomy ‌license ⁢in your state. This process​ typically includes submitting proof of your education and passing ⁤exam scores. Ensure that‍ all ⁤paperwork is ‍completed accurately to avoid ⁢delays.

Benefits of Being a Certified⁢ Phlebotomist

Obtaining your phlebotomy license⁢ can lead to various career opportunities and benefits, including:

In-demand job prospects ‍– The need ​for skilled phlebotomists​ is continually ‍growing.

Opportunities for advancement – Gaining additional⁣ certifications can lead ​to roles​ in healthcare⁢ management ⁣or specialized ‍areas.

Flexible working hours – Many phlebotomists have the​ option of part-time work or flexible schedules.

Practical Tips for Success

To succeed in your phlebotomy career, consider the following tips:

Develop excellent interpersonal ‌skills to build rapport with patients.

Stay updated on the latest techniques and safety protocols.

Network with ‍other healthcare professionals to explore further opportunities.

Personal Case Study

John, a recent graduate of a phlebotomy program in Texas,⁣ shares his experience: “I was nervous about the clinical hours,⁣ but they were the most rewarding. I learned so much from my instructors and made ⁣lasting ​connections in the medical community. ‍After certification, I landed⁤ a job within weeks!”

Conclusion

Obtaining your phlebotomy license is‌ a fulfilling step ‍towards a rewarding ⁢career in the⁣ healthcare industry. By following this guide ⁣and dedicating yourself to training and education, you’ll be well on your way to unlocking your ⁢future as a skilled phlebotomist. ‍Take the⁣ plunge today, and start your journey!

https://phlebotomyclassesonline.net/open-your-future-a-step-by-step-guide-to-getting-your-phlebotomy-license/

[laurencna]

Open Your Future: How to Become a Certified Nursing Assistant Online in 2024

Unlock Your Future: How ‌to Become a Certified‌ Nursing Assistant⁢ Online in 2024

Are you‍ looking to embark on a rewarding career⁣ in healthcare? Becoming ⁣a⁣ Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) could be your pathway⁢ to a fulfilling⁤ job that makes a difference ⁢in people’s⁢ lives. In ⁢2024, pursuing your CNA certification online offers flexibility and convenience, allowing you to balance your studies with other commitments. This comprehensive guide will walk you‌ through the steps⁢ to become a CNA online, the benefits of the profession, and ⁤practical tips to excel in your journey.

What is a Certified Nursing Assistant?

A ⁤Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) is a vital part of the healthcare system, providing​ support⁣ to nurses and ⁣assisting patients with daily activities. ⁢Responsibilities often ⁣include:

Helping patients with personal hygiene.

Assisting ⁢with ‍mobility and transfers.

Monitoring vital signs.

Documenting patient care and progress.

Communicating ‌information ⁤to ⁣nursing staff.

The Importance‌ of Certification

Certification is essential because it validates your‍ skills and knowledge in patient care, which employers actively seek. Additionally, being certified can enhance your job prospects and earning potential.

How to Get Certified as‍ a Nursing Assistant Online

Step‍ 1: Research Approved Programs

The first step is ⁢to find an accredited online CNA program. Look for programs that are state-approved and offer a blend of theory and‌ practical training. Here are some reputable online programs to consider:

Program Name

Duration

Location

Website

American Red Cross

4-8⁤ weeks

Nationwide

redcross.org

Southern Careers Institute

4 weeks

Texas

scitraining.edu

Penn Foster

3-6 months

Online

pennfoster.edu

Step⁢ 2: Complete‌ the⁣ Required ⁢Coursework

After selecting a program, you will complete coursework that covers topics such as:

Patient care ⁤fundamentals

Basic medical terminology

Nutrition‌ and hydration

Safety protocols and infection control

Communication and⁤ interpersonal skills

Step ⁣3: Gain Hands-on Experience

While much of​ your learning can be done online, you’ll still need to ‌complete clinical training. This component may take ⁢place⁢ in nursing homes, hospitals, or clinics. Contact your ‌program for arrangements and options available in your area.

Step 4: Pass the Certification Exam

Once your training is complete, you must pass a CNA competency exam. This test typically consists of two parts: a written section covering theoretical knowledge and a practical ⁤exam ⁤that assesses‌ your hands-on skills.

Benefits⁤ of Becoming a CNA

Choosing to become a CNA offers ‍numerous benefits, including:

Quick ‌Entry into the Workforce: Certification can be ⁣obtained in a ‌few months.

Growing Job Opportunities: Demand for ⁤CNAs is expected to⁤ rise, particularly in elder ‌care.

Experience in Healthcare: Many CNAs go on to pursue advanced nursing roles.

Rewarding ⁣Work: Directly impact patients’ lives⁢ positively.

Practical Tips for Success‌ in Your CNA Career

To thrive in your role as a CNA, consider the following tips:

Be Compassionate: ⁣ Empathy‍ goes ⁣a long way⁢ in⁣ patient care.

Stay Organized: Manage your time effectively‌ between duties and‍ documentation.

Communicate ‍Well: Always keep ⁢your team informed about patient needs and changes.

Continue Learning: Pursue further education and ‍training to expand your skills.

Real-Life Case ‌Studies

Here are some personal experiences of CNAs that reflect the ⁤impact of their ⁣roles:

Case Study 1: Jane, a ‌CNA in a ⁢Long-Term Care Facility

Jane started her CNA‌ career in a long-term care facility.‌ She shares, ⁢“I’m proud to help elderly patients daily. I ‌help them with everything from⁤ bathing to ​meal prep. Building those connections has been the most rewarding aspect.”

Case Study 2:‍ Mark,⁣ a CNA in a Hospital

Mark works in a ⁣hospital and‌ emphasizes the collaborative aspect of his​ job. “As a CNA, I assist nurses and doctors by providing crucial patient updates. It’s ⁣fulfilling to​ know that I contribute to the overall healthcare‍ team.”

Conclusion

Becoming a Certified Nursing ‍Assistant⁢ online in 2024 is a⁢ practical choice for​ anyone drawn to the healthcare field. With the help of accredited programs, the ability to learn at⁤ your own ‌pace, and the promise ⁣of⁣ a fulfilling career, the journey to becoming a CNA is⁢ both accessible and rewarding. Make the⁣ effort to research your options, focus on your ‍studies, and embrace the hands-on experience you’ll⁣ gain. Your ​future in healthcare is just a few steps away!

https://trainingcna.org/open-your-future-how-to-become-a-certified-nursing-assistant-online-in-2024/