My daughter wound up in the Behavioral Health Unit for the 2nd time this year, this being the first time this year at Franciscan. She went there willingly at my direction as she was having one of the worst mental breakdowns I'd seen in quite some time as she was having a bad reaction to some new medications a provider prescribed her, so understandably I was very concerned that she knew that I and her family were there supporting her during this difficult and stressful time.

Also, I had planned a small trip to the mountains for my 5 year anniversary, which we had been planning for almost two years, as I had not taken any extended time off since COVID hit back in March of 2020. My job can be very demanding with working a minimum of 10 hour days, usually more, as everything I do affects staffing levels in hospitals across the region, which in turn impacts patient care. So, I take my job extremely seriously. Anyway, as you can imagine, I was very distressed about leaving town to take the planned trip knowing that my daughter was in the Behavioral Health Unit and not stable.

When I spoke with the nurse, Jenny, on the phone I told her through tears that I was thinking about canceling my trip which at that point in time was non-refundable. She went on to gently explain to me the importance of self-care and allowing myself to have some downtime. Then she said the one thing that resonated the most to me, she said, "If you don't take care of yourself, you will not be able to take care of others. Go and rest, enjoy some time away, celebrate your marriage, she is safe and when you get back you will be in a better frame of mind to care for her. Sometimes you just have to take a step back and rest and do what's best for yourself so you can then do what's best for others." I cried and thanked her for the advice and for once I took the advice and stopped working and worrying. Let me tell you that had she not given me that advice I would have canceled that trip that day.

In looking back, going away was the best thing I could have done, you see at that moment as I was near a breaking point myself. I was carrying so much on my shoulders, worrying constantly about our staff and their work-life balance and about patient care. For almost 2 years of working a minimum of 50 plus hours a week to keep all the ICU's, PCU's and Cath Labs staffed across all regions plus other hard to fill nursing roles during a pandemic and not to mention the nationwide staffing crisis, all the while worrying about my adult daughter's mental health was starting to take a toll on me and I really was in desperate need to take a break.

Since my daughter's stay, I am happy to report that my daughter is doing much better and seems to finally be on the right track in almost 6 years. I'm thankful for the kind and compassionate care she received at the Behavioral Health Unit as they truly made a difference. I am also thankful for the newer caseworker as she really took the time to research my daughter's mental health history, talk with her, and set her up with true resources outside of the hospital which has added to the success of her stabilization.

In general, I want to recognize the Michigan City Franciscan BMU for giving my daughter the best care she has ever received out of the 9 different mental health facilities she has been in and out of in the last six years. And finally, I want to recognize Jenny Smith. Her unbiased kindness and compassion along with how much time she spent on the phone with me and giving me some needed advice really made a difference to me and my husband during what was a major crisis event in our lives. I will never forget her or the compassionate advice she gave to me.