Hello & Welcome Recovery Friends & New Visitors,
My blog post today is in Honor & Remembrance of a young woman gone to soon. As like those famous one’s who were taken way to soon, so does many other precious lives in this world each and everyday from suicide in all manners.
The thousands of bright shining stars that have dimmed and have no big headline or news clip to say who they were.
My good friend Rhonda is stead fast in keeping her daughter “KAITLYN’S” memory and spirit alive by making sure we all never forget her. And I join with her in doing so. Even though I never met Kaitlyn personally, face to face, her mother has blogged about the beautiful heart and soul of who she was, and her spirit will always be a part of many who knew her. So here is a beautiful Re-share of a blog post that was done courtesy of “Wake Forest School Of Medicine” in Honor of Kaitlyn that I felt needed to be shared here on my recovery blog.
What can I tell you about both Kaitlyn, and her mom Rhonda that miss Rhonda has not told you already on her wonderful blog here: http://welding81.wordpress.com ? I can tell you this, Rhonda wrote her a book about her and her daughter that is available on Amazon, that really need to be read. Part of Rhonda’s journey of keeping her daughter remembered is to educate, inform, raise awareness about Mental illness and Suicide. And she has accomplished this in her book
titled; “My Bright Shining Star” http://www.amazon.com/My-Bright-Shining-Star-Brilliance/dp/1905399944/
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Rhonda has a big heart, a caring soul, and has the most awesome southern accent I ever heard! She has so many in the blogging community praying and keeping her and Kaitlyn in our thoughts always. So here is the beautiful that “Wake Forest” wrote, and Rhonda shared on her blog…
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My Kaitlyn…
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In Remembrance of Kaitlyn Elkins by Wake Forest School of Medicine
Every long once in a while, I like to put this link up that Wake Forest School of Medicine made on their online newsletter in memory of Kaitlyn. It continuously runs on that newsletter. They created a fund for their Wellness Center to give more resources and help for those students there that experience depression and make it easier for them to access these resources without fear of bad consequences to their education and career. They are trying and taking steps and have actually hired another psychologist for that sole purpose.
I myself, will give to this cause every year so hopefully what happened to Kaitlyn will never happen to another medical student at Wake Med. If any of you have a few dollars to give (does not have to be much, or as much as you want) it would be wonderful to me and the rest of our family if you would honor Kaitlyn by a donation if you can.
If not, simply click on this link and read the dedication to Kaitlyn and look at some of her art and poetry and a few lines from classmates (which to me are rather sad and made me know how lonely my daughter may have been).
I hope medical schools continue to make things better for their medical students, to make better the horribly isolating and stressful environment that they live in which causes much depression. Not that Kaitlyn ever mentioned anything about that, it is still true as I’ve heard from many med students and doctors that it is true…
I’ve heard from some physicians that they would not wish being a doctor in this day and age on their worst enemy as being a doctor is nothing like it once was. They once had respect, did not have to be at the mercy of insurance companies and ridiculous malpractice premiums, get sued at the drop of a hat, and try to cram in as many patients as humanly possible, not because that is what they want, but because that is what they have to do to even make money. And the list goes on and on and on.
If I had known what being a physician means in this day and age, I would have gotten down on my hands and knees and begged Kaitlyn not to go into such a field instead of the few talks I gave her about “well you know med school is horribly hard, residency is a torture chamber and being a doctor consumes your life.” I would have done more than that…I would have begged her to do something else. Whether that would have made a difference or not, I don’t know because Kaitlyn was very strong willed. We won’t have any good doctors in America one day the way things are going. Then what will we do?
http://www.wakehealth.edu/Oasis/Remembering-Kaitlyn-Elkins.htm
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God Bless All,
Author, Catherine Townsend-Lyon
In Remembrance Of Kaitlyn Elkins….
http://www.amazon.com/My-Bright-Shining-Star-Brilliance/dp/1905399944
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