I am a teacher.  It was a regular Monday lunchtime.  I had only taken a couple of bites of my lunch when I started to feel like I was choking.  As the minutes continued, physical panic set in.  After 20 minutes or so, I finally went to see the school nurse.  By that time, my blood pressure was extremely elevated, and my heart was racing.  I was sweating profusely and spitting up.  The school nurse decided that I needed to go to the Emergency Room.  When I arrived, I was really scared.  I was taken back into a room.  A group of 5–6 caring professionals surrounded me and asked me a million questions.  I couldn’t respond.  I couldn’t process.  I was so scared.  HM3 Galloway seemed to be the only one who could hear me.  They wanted me to lie down.  I was scared to lie down.  She found a position for me that was comfortable.  She got some of the others to give me some space, and then she gently started rubbing my back.  That simple act of kindness in the chaos of the moment broke through, and I started to calm down.  She saw me as a human in a vulnerable state.  Not a case.  

While everyone in the Emergency Room that day was kind, professional, and caring, the connection and expertise of HM3 Galloway will stay with me.  

In one of the most vulnerable and terrifying moments, she showed me empathy and kindness while being a consummate medical professional.  I am incredibly grateful.