QE Hospital

I recently was diagnosed with a chronic pain and fatigue stress disorder and was admitted to QE Hospital in Rotoura which specialises in rheumatic, arthritic conditions, and other chronic muscle and joint pain causing diseases or disorders.

The staff members were absolutely wonderful, and tailored the programmes for individual needs. Clients, who were able bodied, were funded to stay at Compton Court – a cute little hostel for QE’s clients. So technically I was meant to stay with the others. I was not feeling very well in all aspects of my life, so the staff of QE let me stay for the three weeks in the actual hospital ward. This was a great help in my healing and wellness progress. I meet some remarkable people there who helped and encouraged me. Clients and staff nurtured and cared for me better than I have for myself for my entire life.

There were various treatments that I was given to help me to accept and manage my disorder. There is no cure for this particular disorder, which is most common amongst women, and very hard to get a correct diagnosis through blood tests etc. The “Wellness Programme” was specifically designed for clients that suffer from this disorder. As mentioned earlier even though the programme was designed for this particular disorder, individual needs were met. As part of my treatment I was given the “Wellness Programme” Self Management Diary, in which I was encouraged to record my feelings for the day.

My favourite parts of the treatment were the massages and mud packs. I will explain the mud – They are giant wheat packs that have thermal mud in them, which gets stirred and made fresh each treatment. Wonderfully relaxing treatment that gives the recipient time to reflect on their life or to replace their irrational thinking with their new found rational thinking techniques (this is how I spent my mud time). All members of QE staff were always professional and caring. There were many staff members that were involved in my treatment. The masseurs, physiotherapist, counsellors, occupational therapists, doctors and of course the nursing staff will always be imbedded in my memory because they all helped contribute to my new journey.

The counsellors and the occupational therapists were responsible for educating us about how to manage the disorder. Our lessons were about stress, sleep, goal setting and other topics relevant to our condition. The physiotherapists and their team were responsible for implementing physical exercise and they tailored an individual programme for me and the other clients. One of the physical activities that I loved was movement to music and being introduced to using the Swiss (Gym) Ball. For the last two weeks we had aqua jogging/aqua aerobics every day at Rotoura’s Aquatic Centre. This was a great challenge for me because I had an unknown fear of drowning, so when I was unable to touch the bottom I suffered from anxiety. However before the three weeks were over I had overcome that fear.

One of the nicest treatments that I had (and only the clients with my disorder are privileged to have this) was with Tina – the Watso. The Watso is a massage treatment that involves lying down in the water, eyes closed and letting Tina manipulate/massage body. It is a great treatment to test Trust, and for someone like me it was terrifying, but I stuck to it and it has completely changed my life.

The whole experience at QE has transformed my life. I still fall into old habits, the pain and fatigue are still present but I continue to strive to manage it and recognise when the disorder is impacting on my life. Most importantly I actually had the courage to leave a long-term relationship that was creating stress in my life. (This was not a recommendation from the Staff – it was just a result of my realization or awakening of my own needs) I am more relaxed, calm and actually like myself (Yes I am on medication which helps keep me calm but the techniques that I was taught contribute to the change in my attitude). The most important thing I learnt from the care at QE was that everyone deserves respect even me.

Thank you to all the wonderful team at QE I will forever hold you all deep in my heart.

©Katrina Fankhauser-Claydon