A Healthcare Worker Family: Our New Normal

This is my husband, Scott. Every day when he leaves for work, I don’t like it. He works at a hospital, so he doesn’t have a choice. Although I support his job, the truth is that every day I wish he didn’t go. Because every day that he goes to work, his health—and life—is at risk. In addition, that puts me and my son’s health at risk. I’m sure he does not like that.

Every day when he comes home after work, he must remove his clothes in the garage and put them in a garbage bag before coming in the house. He won’t touch any of us until he washes himself. Our son, Jason, gets super excited when he comes home, but shortly thereafter he gets upset because my husband won’t touch or hug him. Jason doesn’t understand. But that is our new normal right now.

My husband doesn’t get to work from home and spend time with our son. He doesn’t have the luxury of complaining about how he is going crazy or getting bored staying home. He still has to go to work and potentially expose himself to COVID-19 there.

Being on social media sometimes is hard to hear people complaining about being cooped up at home so long. I’m sure my husband and the other healthcare workers wish that was their daily concern. So I want to thank him—one needle in the haystack of the many healthcare and essential workers out there—for risking their lives to save ours. My son Jason and I are so proud of him for being brave amid this very scary time in our life.

Thank you sweetie.