Saturday, April 24, 2010

When You Know the Doctor Needs a Nap

My husband is in the middle of an intense rotation right now. This is a brief interaction we had after a 30-hour call night yesterday.

Me: "Did you get any sleep last night?
Husband: "I laid down and got 30 minutes of very interrupted sleep."
Me: "Oh, I'm so sorry."
Husband: "It was definitely not my favorite night so far. I got seven new patients and three of them were extremely challenging cases. (Pause.) You look funny."

(I was wearing a knee-length, white, poofy/fun skirt, a tan v-neck tee, and a North Face black sleeveless jacket.)

Me (laughing lightly): "Okay." (We have very different taste but I probably did look a little weird.) "Can I make you something for lunch?"
Husband: "Okay, just something fast."
I started making a peanut butter and jam sandwich.
Husband (leaning over my shoulder watching): "It's taking too long - it doesn't have to be perfect."
Me: "Maybe instead you could just say, 'Thanks, Liz, for making me a sandwich.'"
He didn't.
Husband (as I handed him the sandwich): "You really do look funny."
Me (laughing lightly, again): "Okay."
Husband: "Would you like me to come to the baseball game with you guys?"
Me (pretending to be focused on something else): "Mmmm."
I secretly hoped he would immediately pass out on the couch.

He went upstairs, and did not come back down. I breathed a sigh of relief. He is a super nice husband, really, and I love, love, love to talk with and be with him. But, call nights during residency really do not bring out his best qualities. However, as long as I remember The Reason for his grumpiness, all is well, (it is still hard though - especially to laugh at and ignore his unnecessary and provocative comments).  

Some new friends of ours told me last night that they had attempted to get into medical school last year but had not been accepted. We talked for a while and then I suggested that they ask my husband for advice. Quickly, I took it back; I told them to wait until the middle of next month to ask him about his experience thus far. I don't know if he could, or would, encourage anyone to go into medicine from his vantage point right now.

3 comments:

Jessica | The Pixelista said...

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I now offer a Blonde version of the Blogger template you're using. I'm glad to see my designs put to good use! I love your blog.

cheri said...

i wonder what he meant when you looked "funny"

yeah, he really needs his sleep...

Life of a Doctor's Wife said...

Awww! That's rough. My normally sweet and sensitive husband tends to get a little more critical than usual when he's post call, too. Not fun.

What I find so amusing is that sometimes he protests getting some sleep! I guess he really wants to enjoy his time off... but his eyes will be closing every two seconds and he'll still insist that he's not sleepy. Silly husband. :-)