I was recently and unexpectedly on the receiving end of double bypass surgery. As a veteran, I am not unaccustomed to injuries or hospitalization, but a bypass surgery was on an entirely new level.

As my family filled in to show support and well-wishes, they had little understanding of the pain and discomfort I was experiencing. Day two, once the anesthesia was a distant memory, the pain of a split chest, broken ribs, Afib, and hoses in every conceivable location settled in. Every breath, burp, hiccup, or cough was like a chisel into my chest.

Throughout all of this misery was a calm and attentive voice, "You're okay. You are ok, just breathe." When you wake from a shallow sleep to see a face over you staring at the screen saying, "I can see it coming, here is your heart pillow, hold on," and then wham - Afib! Like a sledgehammer to the chest. Once it passed, I could see her holding pain meds, a cold rag for my head, and a refilled ice-cold water.

The next night, I'm drenched in sweat, pleading that the air be turned down somehow. "Unfortunately, that's as low as it goes". Later that night, I woke to a cool breeze blowing over my face. She had gone around in the middle of the night and found an air purifier and had it blowing over me. Wow, that is amazing! It's one thing to have a competent, articulate caretaker who is at her best when you are at your worst, but the level of forethought and empathy was off the charts.

This is the standard of excellence I pray others could experience. My successful recovery started with her.