Customer Reviews

Confessions of a Trauma Junkie: My Life as a Nurse Paramedic (Reflections of America Series)

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Honest and engrossing. I enjoyed this first responder perspective. Sherry Jones Mayo has been an EMT, Emergency Room Nurse and a Critical Incident counselor. She brings the reader into the ER and into the ambulance. So much of our medical experience is from television shows like ER and House, and Grey's Anatomy. But, unless you're a medical professional, you have no way of understanding the experience and pressure Emergency Service Personnel face on a daily basis. These people choose these professions; they choose to be on the front lines of emergency care and saving lives.

Sherry's book is a series of vignettes, some her own experiences, some from other EMS personnel. Many are hysterically funny and irreverent about those strange and obnoxious patients. Others are tender, recounting an EMTs first patient loss, or the aftermath of a traumatic experience and the importance of crisis counseling for care givers.

It's a rare look into the healing profession. As I read, I came away with a greater appreciation for those who save lives daily.

You may never have the opportunity to read a book like this again. This true life documentation is an interesting look into the quality and care presented in the most traumatic incidents. Sometimes sad, sometimes humorous, the first part deals with Sherry Jones Mayo's time served as a paramedic. Vignettes of life, injury and death on the run. As with all traumatic jobs, there must be comic relief, and so there is, the "gallows humor" method of retaining one's sanity in an insane world. I do not use the word "insane" to mean anything degrading, simply as that is how the world appears in chaotic, traumatic incidents of life. You will find all of these in this honest non-fiction book.

The second part gives the reader insight into who Sherry is, what inspired her, what obstacles she had to overcome in her own life, and where/how the breaking point can suddenly appear. No holds barred, this is again a very honest approach to her life at several stages, her love of family, and how incidents in the ER can impact her concerns for her family. She has seen it all. It is extremely difficult not to interpret what is happening at work with what might be happening to her own family. Separating family and work is definitely not as easy as in other occupations.

The third part could well be called survival of the staff from the patients in the ER. It is, for the most part, lighter and a definite theme of how to survive the abuse of the patients. Told with tongue firmly planted in cheek, it is a day-to-day list of patience above and beyond when it comes to receiving patients who are not really sick or are just simply demanding. The people who are "too sick" to tend to themselves but can manage well enough to treat the caregivers like servants. And then there are the "regulars", people trying to get drugs by acting out pain and telling the doctors what they need. Here, too, "gallows humor" reigns from necessity.

The fourth section covers in part living with grief, accepting it, healing, and remembering the positive. I found a personal connection in both getting through grief and, further in this section, the result of delayed grief. Apparently I did the right thing in dealing with the loss of my grandmother by writing a story of her childhood, as the only grandchild who had heard all the stories. With delayed grief, it is an entirely different feeling and can hit at any time, even decades later. It lays buried and unnoticed until some trigger leaves a person reeling and not understanding why, it is buried so deeply. The content of this section of the book was very helpful to me personally, and I highly recommend the book on the merits of this segment especially. Referring to grief, Sherry is not only talking about the need for families of patients, but also for those attending to the patients and their families as well.

A separate story on Hurricane Katrina brings Crisis Intervention to the forefront and demonstrates just how important this is. So little could be done by the rescue teams and yet they felt the need to have done more. This puts a great burden on these people and consequently eventually on their families. This distinct section is a very important read, not only for that aspect but it does explain a lot of errors and delays that occurred at the time. This portion and the following deal mainly with the very real problems facing even seasoned ER personnel and the need for crisis intervention.

All told, this book will bring a greater understanding of just how much these very special people are capable of, how caring they are, and why some burn out so soon. I definitely recommend this book on many levels. Who has not had some connection to this field at some point in their lives. This is how it is, written faithfully and dealing more with outcomes and feelings than a gory tale.

The book is very well written with a nice balance to hold the lay person's attention. There is also a glossary at the end of the book, although most terms are either recognizable or explained along the way as well.

Sherry and I met while taking a class together at the University of Phoenix accelerated online program. She and I worked well together, helping to lead and motivate our class team to moving forward in completing our assignments on time and on target. Then I learned that Sherry published the book, "Confessions of a Trauma Junkie: My Life as a Nurse Paramedic," and read it cover to cover. I couldn't put it down as I relived a past life as a southern California rescue fireman, facing birth, death, and human despair. In her book, Sherry takes you on explosive ambulance rides and chaotic encounters in the hospital E.R., where human beings are at their most vulnerable state. From heart-wrenching incidents of death and horror, to moments of embarrassment and humor, Sherry Jones Mayo shares it with you all in her amazing book. What you'll learn after reading this book is that behind the badge and uniform of every emergency professional is a human spirit that longs for the healing of each and every call they respond to.

I loved this book! Most of us never get a glimpse behind the scenes of an actual emergency room so this book brought it to life for me. I actually bought another copy to send to my niece who is considering becoming a nurse.

This is a great, well-written book by an outstanding medic. The book really allows you an honest look at what being a nurse/medic means. Outstanding stories, would recommend it to anyone!

"Confessions of a Trauma Junkie" is a compelling and enlightening collection of stories in the life of a medical professional, telling us what goes on at the accident scene, in the ambulance and at the hospital when dealing with a variety of emergency situations. The stories are revealing, personal and touching, which gave me an appreciation of what EMTs and others do for the public many times each day while somehow maintaining their sanity. I especially enjoyed the "Dog in the road" storyline, it made me laugh out loud! Buy this book!

Sherry Jones Mayo has worked most of her life in the emergency medical field, as an ER nurse, paramedic and critical incident debriefer for both civilian and military employers.

Mayo explores and shares her own life story, from the initial inkling that she wanted to be involved in healing (as a youngster she brought home a dead dog and put it in her mother's bed so she could 'make it better') to the present day. Her daughter has followed in her footsteps, working emergency situations as well. We are privy to her personal problems, struggles and solutions, dealt with using her own personal tenacity and the strength of her faith.

Sherry has gathered stories from other medical personnel as well. I was totally captured by these tales. Many are heartbreaking, reinforcing the strength needed to deal on a daily basis with the unexpected. Others are laugh out loud funny - especially those from the emergency room.

Confessions of a Trauma Junkie takes an inside look at what goes on behind the scenes and the toll it extracts from those who serve the public. It also celebrates the joy and satisfaction that come from that same service.

Mayo writes with great honesty and the pride she takes in her profession shines through her writing. If I was ever in need of medical help, I'd want Sherry on my side.

As Sherry says " I held her life in my hands as God held my hand steadily over hers. These are the moments that reaffirm why we do what we do, and renew pride in our profession as one of doing the type of work that not everyone was meant to do, but that some of us are privileged to do."

Confessions of a Trauma Junkie affords the average layperson an interesting look into the fast-paced world of emergency medicine. Sherry Jones Mayo uses her experiences working as a both a paramedic and an E.R. nurse to present an overview of the life of "trauma junkies" through a series of essays and stories written by herself and others. Each insight clearly demonstrates the high stress and emotional hazards inherent in this much needed profession.

But all is not doom and gloom -- there are some glimmers of hope and laughter. Particularly charming is the section entitled "E.R. Short Stuff: The Day to Day Life of Emergency Room Personnel." In these brief vignettes we see some of the attraction of the emergency medicine world. There are days when patients show up at the E.R. door with the most unbelievable (and embarrassing) of complaints. You may never look at a shampoo bottle or a thong in quite the same way again.

Gallows humor and giggles provide a much needed stress outlet for those times when things go horribly wrong. Before we pass judgment on the laughs these hardworking souls may have at the public's expense, Mayo points out how much emotional relief is needed in the story of her daughter, a fresh out-of-training E.R. technician. Her daughter is ordered to wrap the head of a very small boy who dies of injuries from a gun accident after she worked long and hard to save this poor child's life. Practiced clinical detachment and cool professionalism easily fly out the window when dealing with the young and vulnerable.

Confessions is quite an eye-opening read for those outside the emergency medical profession, but Mayo's target audience is primarily those who work in the field. In spite of poor editing, the book will succeed for this audience. By sharing these joys and sorrows, E.R. personnel can take comfort in knowing they are not alone. -- Cindy Matthews for the FEARLESS REVIEWS

Anyone working in healthcare, and especially in Emergency Medicine, should pick up CONFESSIONS OF A TRAUMA JUNKIE, and enjoy some of the most wonderful tales of the ER, Paramedics and the wonderful team of men and women who work in this field. The book is so well written, warm and memorable, and the author is just a tremendous individual and credit to her profession.

As I am a Patient Liaison in UCLA Emergency Medicine, Ronald Reagan-UCLA Medical Center, Los Angeles, and a UCLA Healthcare employee, I loved the book. Many times tears came to my eyes, both with emotion, and with laughter, over stories that resonated with me from ER. My UCLA ER family are my family for life and from the moment I started volunteering in UCLA ER, I felt that I had come home finally to a family of friends who I not only love and admire, but truthfully, I could be myself with. That led to my UCLA Healthcare career.

Buy and cherish CONFESSIONS OF A TRAUMA JUNKIE, as you will never forget this book.

Michael P. Richards, Los Angeles
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Sherry Jones Mayo has written a tremendously informative and humorous book about the daily experiences of emergency services personnel, whether paramedics, EMTs, doctors, or nurses. After twenty years in the field, Mayo reveals multiple aspects of the job from caring for people who need emergency care, to experiencing tragic losses, difficult and often humorous patients, and coping with fatigue, emotional breaking points, and personal issues.

Most books about trauma are written for the victims and their caretakers--so the caretakers (counselors, responders to an emergency, even family members) can help the victims. Although television dramas pay homage to the courage of emergency services workers--especially in the ER--these programs tend to treat the situations as heroic and dramatic rather than showing the actual real effects--the emotional and physical toll--these experiences have on the workers. Mayo provides multiple aspects of how emergency services personnel respond to trauma, most of it becoming their everyday work, but the deaths of children, cases of child abuse, or situations that resonate with their own personal tragic experiences can require immediate counseling and crisis intervention to protect the workers. Burnout is common, but so is the deep feeling of reward when the greatest efforts pay off.

This book is rich in a variety of experiences ranging from doing emergency care on an airplane to helping overweight people out of their homes, and an emergency services worker experiencing an accident and then seeing things from the patient's side as her co-workers care for her. Mayo shares her own experiences throughout, but she also shares the stories of co-workers, her daughter who was inspired to follow in her mother's footsteps, and numerous other first-person accounts of helping in an emergency.

While "Confessions of a Trauma Junkie" has numerous telling and moving stories, what I appreciated most was the humor. The humorous passages actually made me better understand how emergency services personnel respond to the most difficult situations, the boredom they have to deal with, and the need for humor as a coping mechanism. The workers also do not always receive the appreciation and respect they deserve. They become rightfully irritated when treated like servants, when they are threatened with lawsuits, or when the lazy try to take advantage of them, refusing even to sit up by themselves because a worker can pick them up. While Mayo's experiences occur in the greater metropolitan Detroit area, and a larger economically and socially challenged population exists there, I imagine emergency services workers need to deal with rude and inconsiderate patients constantly, whether in rural or metropolitan areas.

The humor in this book was so rich that I would recommend it to any emergency services personnel simply as a way to cope and relieve stress with a good laugh. Among the many humorous passages, one of my favorites was the response received from a patient when the admitting nurse asked for her name:

I'm too sick to talk. Ask my husband what my name is...can't you see I'm sick? What's wrong with you people, asking me questions when it's obvious I can't breathe? You want to know anything, you ask my husband. I don't have enough breath to answer your questions. You supposed to be a Nurse, you should know that.

Many similar stories are told regarding simple questions asked to patients, as well as shenanigans by patients that range from urinating on the hospital walls to showing up for free pregnancy tests and free meals, and another favorite, the man who complains he's having a heart attack, and when the nurse diagnoses that he is not and asks him to wait, decides to go out for a smoke.

Mayo also tells many stories of rewarding experiences, most notably of going to help people in Mississippi after Hurricane Katrina. Hurricane victims offered emergency services workers the last of their food out of gratitude; gas station attendants provided workers with free fuel and snacks, and people in airports, when they saw workers in their emergency gear and learned they were returning from assisting the hurricane victims, said, "Thank you. Thank you for whatever you did."

I say, "Thank you, Sherry Jones Mayo, for writing this important book so you and your co-workers who work twelve hour shifts, stay overtime, wear down your own bodies caring for ours, and put up with situations no one should have to, will get the recognition you deserve for everything you do for the rest of us. Thank you for caring for us, even when we are not desirable patients. I don't know how you can do it--it's not a job I could do--but I won't forget what you and your co-workers go through everyday next time I need care."

I know several EMTs and nurses to whom I'll recommend this book wholeheartedly. I trust anyone who reads it will do the same.

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