Gina Arena, RN

She’s comforted me a lot. I’ve struggled a lot being here, and she’s managed to make me feel better and excited to see her. When I first got here, I went to the calming room because of the very dark thoughts I was having. They were jumbled and didn’t make much sense to me, even as they came out of my mouth, but she seemed to perfectly understand everything I was blurting out. She managed to calm me down even though I couldn’t make sense of things. She talked to me like I was her very own daughter. I feel like she always knows what to say.

Another example was the incident involving my discharge date. When I was told I wouldn’t be leaving at the time, I was assured I’d be able to leave, but I broke. I cried and sobbed the entire morning out of pure desperation as to why I couldn’t leave. When Gina talked with me and brought it up, she comforted me. She treated me so kindly, like she truly believed her words to me. I couldn’t begin to explain the amount of comfort she gave me. It was enough to slowly get moving through the day, even if it felt like a duty too big for me. She believes in me so much, from her words to her actions, that I feel it’s unfair not to give her this prize. She has made me feel better than anyone else here has, and that takes a lot. I have so many feelings about her, even if we’ve only talked throughout the days she’s here. She feels like a presence in my life that I can look forward to. From the simple check-ins to the detailed conversations we’ve had. Thank you so much for making this stay easy, Gina.