I was treated at the Hospital for MMMT Ovarian Cancer in June of this year (2017). I made it through a very long and extensive surgery, while also learning to become a future cancer patient. I was very tired, sad, hopeful, and very, very weak. Melissa Jasset was my nurse for the bulk of my stay. Melissa helped me slowly begin to move back into my new body, urging me to trust this new body. Every daily task became difficult and exhausting post-surgery. Melissa was holding me up in all respects as I struggled to get better. She was kind, loving, compassionate, while also being challenging. Challenging me to push myself, trust myself, to learn I was in fact, going to be OK. Melissa helped me take my first shower; I was shivering, scared, so uncomfortable. She went out of her way to get all of the equipment I needed to bathe safely. She stayed with me so I wouldn't be alone. She helped me wash the places I couldn't reach. I was both humbled and grateful.
Three days after my first surgery, I was rushed to another surgical theatre because the content of my intestines was leaking out onto my incision. Another long and difficult surgery. Melissa had a few days off during this time.
When she returned and came in to see me, I was greeted with her beautiful smile and her joyful teasing. "Look what happens when I leave! I see I can't leave here without something dramatic happening to you!" Melissa took me shopping for flip flops. She could see I was getting depressed being in my room so much and for so long; she knew getting me off my floor and out into the world was necessary to help me feel like I was part of the world again. Even if it was for a few minutes. I still have those flip flops, they mean the world to me.
I was at my weakest, sickest, and I was very sad knowing this hospital stay was leading to more treatment for my diagnosed cancer. Melissa didn't just tend my wounds or change my dressings. Melissa didn't just give me my meds. Melissa helped me eat. Melissa gave me hope. Melissa made me feel loved and cared for. She has made all the difference in the world as far as my journey with cancer. Her warmth, her belief in hope, her energy, her encouragement, and her ear- these were always with me in the first few weeks of my journey. I will always hold Melissa very, very, close to my heart.