sharings from Pauline O'Shea, Patient Advocate, Public speaker, Media spokesperson & Writer on the challenges & healing that life has to offer
IT'S A DAY OF CELEBRATION BUT A DAY OF MIXED EMOTIONS TOO for many... those without Dads, for a lifetime, or lost through ill health or death, those who longed to be Dads, but never were, or those who were, but lost a child. And what about all those who have never officially had the… Continue reading ALL TYPES OF DADS…
We've all been there, those moments in life where life itself can seem more demanding than we are able for, where we feel exhausted before we even start, where we feel alone on our journey. While I am not in that place at this time in my life, I have been! And the reality is,… Continue reading ‘THE CLIMB’, by Pauline O’Shea, a reflection and poem for those feeling overwhelmed, lost and alone…
I've been ill since last I wrote. It lasted for weeeeeeks. A virus. Not Covid... officially... but a definite stepbrother or stepsister. First came the excessive tired, then the cough, the sore throat, the weak limbs... it felt like someone had pulled the bath plug out... Then there was the chest infection, the reduced oxygen,… Continue reading ‘LISTEN TO YOUR BODY’!… yes, but what happens to the rest of your life while you do🤦♀️ ??
As a heart patient who has survived multiple heart attacks as a result of a condition called SCAD (Spontaneous Coronary Artery Dissection) combined with a medical misdiagnosis, and then went on to experience a cardiac arrest, open heart surgery and a diagnosis of heart failure, you may think I'd sort of fallen out of love… Continue reading ‘A HEART’, by Pauline O’Shea… a poem written for everyone who has one!
On this month, 10 years ago, my life changed forever. On the very day I brought my beautiful baby daughter home from the hospital, I suffered a condition called SCAD, where a tear occurred in one of my coronary arteries, causing a heart attack. I was 38 years old. A trip to A+E, a medical… Continue reading 10 YEARS on from a SCAD & HEART FAILURE diagnosis … here are some of the things I’ve learned…
I am blessed to have my mother still with me, but I know many who do not. I know those too who have lost a child, and those who longed for them but never had them, both having to live with absence in their hearts, often invisible to the outside world. I have met people… Continue reading ‘A MOTHER’S DAY FOR ALL’, reflection and poem, by Pauline O’Shea
As I lay in my bed in a large cardiac ward some years ago after open heart surgery, I became somewhat fixated on a tiny window on the opposite side of the ward. It wasn’t even showing a great view, unless you count a metal fire escape as ‘artistic’. If I was asked at the… Continue reading NATURE’S HEALING… science shows that connecting with nature can improve our physical health… so is it time Doctors prescribed ‘Nature’ to patients?
Photo by gdtography from PexelsBEING IRISHBy Pauline O’Shea Where once the bog road was the wayThe Irish of the modern dayPrefer to travel motorwaysTo work for tech, than go save hay Where once a granny wore a shawlAnd sat by home fires lone and smallNow with her smartphone apps installedShe laughs at gifs and facetime’s all Where once spuds were the… Continue reading ‘Being Irish’, by Pauline O’Shea… Happy St. Patrick’s Day ☘
Wishing all the wonderful women of the world in the home, in business, caring for others, dealing with wars, in the world of sports, art, media, volunteering in their communities, in religious life, dealing with challenges, dealing with loss, dealing with children, dealing with elderly parents, living alone, bereaved, separated, living with a health diagnosis,… Continue reading Happy International Women’s Day 2022 💗 from Pauline O’Shea
Main photo by Michelle Leman from Pexels thank you to Michelle and to her brave and beautiful model. In a recent conversation with a fellow heart failure patient, who has had the condition for five years, she began to cry when she talked about her interactions with a lifelong friend post diagnosis. With her permission, I quote her… Continue reading The INVISIBILITY of our illnesses or struggles can be an extra challenge, but there are ways to overcome…
The healing of life 