PREGNANT!

That really doesn't have that much to do with this post... but it's one of those words I like to throw around in a crowd. It's a hot word. When you say it, everyone can't help but stop what they're doing and look over to see who the hot word refers to. "Herpes" is also a hot word. Say that at a party and see how much attention you get.

Anyway, the point of the post is actually a memory I had today. A great pre-med moment. So I had to share.

When I was at Harvard doing my PBPM program I also worked at Beth Israel Deaconess Emergency Department doing clinical research. I was 23. And there was a hot (I mean HOT) emergency medicine doctor there that I could barely stand to be around out of complete fear that I would do or say something stupid. He was actually beautiful... and I don't say that about many men. And tall. Anyway.... I was reading an article today and his name was on it.... and it made me remember one specific day in the ED.

The cool thing about Beth Israel is that they love to teach... so if you say you're a "pre-med" you automatically get to see/do/watch tons of stuff. So on this particular day Mr. Stupidly Gorgeous was about to do a spinal tap... and so sure enough he hunts me down and asks if I'd like to help. If it were anyone else, I totally would have wanted to... but I really wanted to be as far away from him as possible. But in the name of not being a jackass, I of course said yes.

So we go into this woman's curtain cubicle and prep for the tap. She's naked doing the side snail curl on the bed, Mr. Stupidly Gorgeous is trying to get the tap, and I'm supposed to be holding some tubing up so it doesn't get contaminated. But 20 minutes later he still hasn't gotten the tap. At 30 minutes I am getting dizzy from standing so long, being excited about the tap, and being nervous about being next to Mr. Stupidly Gorgeous. Around this time I remember that I also haven't eaten for over 8 hours... and several minutes later I start feeling pins and needles on the top of my head. Then I start seeing black spots. I try to shake them off by breathing deeply and moving my head. But then my sight is almost gone and I know I'm going to pass out. I don't want to pass out on the patient while Mr. Stupidly Gorgeous is trying to tap her... but I'm too embarrassed to actually tell him that I'm going to pass out. So I lay the tube on the bed, put my back to the wall, and slid down to my butt as I passed out silently.

The next thing I hear is a faint conversation between a couple of doctors about the probability that I am pregnant.... one of those "matter of fact" ED conversations. I remember being HIGHLY insulted that everyone would automatically assume that I was pregnant (especially being a 23 year old pre-med). Anyway, I wasn't pregnant... just dehydrated and hypoglycemic... and totally nervous about being around the greek god. Eventually I had to face him and apologize for ditching him in the middle of a procedure... but he was pretty cool about it. Which just made him all the more stupidly gorgeous to me.