Author Archives: Amy Getter

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About Amy Getter

MS, RN, CHPN

SPINNING OUT OF CONTROL

Posted on April 15, 2012 by Amy Getter

Do days sometimes just blur together into a big grey mess?  I was looking at my niece’s note on Facebook, her feeling of juggling so many colorful balls at once while riding a unicycle and the knowledge of how fragile … Continue reading →

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NO WHINING

Posted on April 5, 2012 by Amy Getter

I’ve transformed into a whiner recently. In a wash of self pity, I rubbed the side of my head, hard-hit as I had reached for my cane which had fallen beneath the kitchen table. I was obediently performing my hated … Continue reading →

Posted in end of life care, hospice story, loss | Tagged , | 3 Comments

ADVENT OF SPRING

Posted on March 21, 2012 by Amy Getter

Over the years, I have worked with many intelligent and incredibly competent physicians that have earned my respect and certainly the respect and trust of those who were their care recipients. In the past decade, I have cared for only … Continue reading →

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THE SOUND OF AN EMPTY HOUSE

Posted on March 8, 2012 by Amy Getter

Someone mentioned today, how difficult it is to be left behind when the person you loved and cared for is gone- “the sound of an empty house”.  I thought back to a time when I was a newly single mom, … Continue reading →

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A MONSTER IN THE CLOSET

Posted on February 8, 2012 by Amy Getter

Mary and I sat quietly together, talking about her dying.  Light increases her headaches, so she lays in a dark room most of the day.  She is rather pragmatic, facing her death many years before she ever expected with frequent stark remarks … Continue reading →

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NEW YEAR’S RESOLUTION

Posted on January 7, 2012 by Amy Getter

A man lay dying in his living room. His spouse of 30 years was the other sole occupant of an upstairs apartment.  She was exhausted and I asked about sharing the care giving with the young adult children that lived … Continue reading →

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WHAT THE WORLD NEEDS NOW, IS LOVE…

Posted on December 23, 2011 by Amy Getter

At times, I am caught off guard by a word or a gesture.  Today, a group of numbers stunned me for a long moment.  I cradled Sara’s arm while I took her blood pressure, and saw the blue-black tattoo along … Continue reading →

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A THIN PLACE

Posted on November 22, 2011 by Amy Getter

 In the Celtic tradition, a thin place is the meeting of something spiritual with our earthly time, a glimpse of the divine…Heaven and earth kiss each other.  Where two worlds intermingle, something happens; inexplicable, sacred and people describe a sense … Continue reading →

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MESSAGES

Posted on November 10, 2011 by Amy Getter

I have heard in many stories from friends and loved ones, about the reassuring messages sent  from those who have died to those of us left here with feelings of loss and grief that must be journeyed through.  They seem … Continue reading →

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LESSONS IN LOSS

Posted on October 26, 2011 by Amy Getter

I remember my mother setting down her mandolin one day, and stating simply “I guess I won’t play anymore”.  I listened to Debra tell me that her rosary beads still hung around her neck, where they’d been for 40 years, … Continue reading →

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