Watch this video, please

A friend linked this video to me, and I clicked on it to be polite, but now I'm shaking. Because this could happen to any of us. We are all this mom in this video. What she says at 2:08, yeah, that would be me. "Sorry to bother you..." It would probably be you, too.

 

Be careful out there. You are worth taking care of.

Comments

[Erin]

My mom described hers as feeling like an elephant was sitting on her chest. Women present so different than men.

[J]

My mom had one of these at age 38. "I'm fine. Don't call the ambulance. If you call the ambulance I will leave! DON'T DO IT!"

And then she died.

Thank you, Elizabeth Banks... It really could happen to any of us. It has happened to so many of us.

[hush]

@J - I'm so sorry for your loss.

Amen, THANK YOU E. Banks!

I have a long family history of heart disease. Everyone I'm related to gets high blood pressure in their 30s. My grandmother died in her sleep from heart disease at age 60. I also have the general body type for it (apple shape/fat around the heart), plus I've had hypertension when pregnant and on the pill, all of which can be precursors to heart disease later on - so I know I'm definitely at risk. I appreciate this reminder!

[Chris]

Thank you for posting this Moxie! My mom saved her own life by watching Barbra Walters' special last year. She went to the hospital that night and left 3 days later with 8 brand new stents. We all need to be reminded to pay attention to what our bodies are trying to tell us.

[The milliner]

We've had enough ER visits to know the warning signs of a bunch of serious/life threatening illnesses, and are lucky enough to also have a gov't funded call-in line where you can talk to a nurse before going to the ER.

But even with those things, our priorities can still get momentarily screwed up. I'll never forget the morning DH was freaking because he knew he needed to go to the hospital with certain symptoms he had (and considering his medical history), but he felt that if he didn't show up for work that day, he would get fired. I had to convince him to go to the hospital, and that if he lost his job, we'd deal.

I've found that having close-up experiences with DH's medical issues certainly has made me less likely to ignore my own. But it's not fool proof. Especially (as the video points out) for a lot of mothers, as we put ourselves last on the list.

[Alexis]

This is a great article, and a great topic to explore and have fun. Thanks for sharing.

[liz]

I'm all choked up. I really am.

[Slim]

It is driving me crazy that her kid knows she's having a heart attack and DOESN'T CALL 911. Or get the mom who'd driving car pool in there.

I am also bothered by the fact that Baby Bear's porridge is evidently warmer than his mother's larger portion, so I have a long history of missing the point. Still.

[Tine]

Done. Noted. Coming off a major health scare of my own this week...I've learned a thing or two about putting myself last.

[Wilhelmina]

@J so very sorry for your loss.

@ Slim I totally agree that the boy was well able and old enough to call the ambulance. You often read of very little children saving mummy because they dialled the emergency number. Women need to be aware of heart disease for sure, but children need to be able to get help.

@ The Milliner we have the phone line too. Across the pond. NHS direct. Similar to Canada. With DD's allergy issues I find the choice of going to A&E ( the ER hard). If I go sometimes I feel that I should not have ( observing allergy) so mother wrong, and other times mother wrong for ringing the phone line and not going.

We did not go to hospital two weeks ago when she accidentally ate a small piece of dark chocolate with ground chilis in. Gave the antihistamine as the dose was so low and DH and I had a tense half hour seeing the swelling come and go. Then we were right about not going.

But with all the medical issues and impressive big file of all the medical history of DD etc. I totally missed that a week later I got bronchitis. Very last on the list syndrome.

I was rushing around like a fool. Until the teacher asked what was wrong with me as I looked terrible. Should see doctor. Went to doctor, expected to hear minor virus go away and got antibiotics.

It's a very good video and good post. Thought provoking.

[meggiemoo]

I agree with Slim, I thought when the boy grabbed the phone he would dial 911. Maybe that was part of the dark humor of the piece? Anyway, it was an excellent video. I shared it on my Facebook page.

[Erin]

I agree with you guys generally that the kid was old enough to call 9-1-1 and I can see how that could be jarring as you watched it. I read it a bit differently; for me, part of the piece was about *getting help for yourself* - recognizing the symptoms and doing something. Since the subtext of the message was that women are running around doing things for others and putting themselves last, the video forces her to be the one who gets help for herself.

[Pam]

Thanks for sharing this Moxie. I wasn't bothered by the boy not calling 911, because I don't think the intended audience of the video is children. I found one of the most compelling parts of the video when the mom calls 911 and apologizes for bothering them. For the message to hit home as hard as it did, I think the mom needed to be the one who made the call.

In a different context where the film was intended to communicate a different message, definitely the kid should have called 911!

[Dina Rose]

Thank you so much for sharing this.

[Dianabol]

This is a great article, and a great topic to explore and have fun. Thanks for sharing.

[Steroids for Sale]

I am also bothered by the fact that Baby Bear's porridge is evidently warmer than his mother's larger portion, so I have a long history of missing the point. Still.