0200 December 1st: Emergency Department
– Poetry by Michelle Anderson –
i have experienced a transformation
when the witching hour strikes,
surrounded by limbs on stretchers
and retching and pus
and no available beds;
where the humanity around me
dissolves into bodies
and the humanity within me
dissolves into mind.
and so, it is a transformation
of loss
wherein we all become
the sum of one of our parts
About the Author – Michelle Anderson
Michelle Anderson (she/her) is a resident physician in psychiatry at the University of Calgary and completed her MD at the University of Alberta. Much of her writing has been inspired by her experiences as a medical trainee as she has shared in patients’ stories and grappled with the culture of medicine. She is passionate about social change within medicine, as well as exploring a deeper understanding of mind-body-spirit connection as it relates to wellness.
In her free time, Michelle enjoys travel, kayaking, history, philosophy, and spending time amongst the trees.
Did you like this poem? Then you might also like:
The Identified Patient
What I want the surgeon to know
Sanctuary, and other poems
The Body as Poem
Metaplasia and other poems
This is What Death Does
Where Courage Lives
The Psychiatric Patient Profiled in My Application
Modern Medical Miracles
What the Mirror Says
Writing Myself Alive: An Episodic Poem
Breathing; Love These Lively Things
Oh Emma; Slow Dancing
In the Mirror, For My Mother
Zenstronomy: Zen of Instruction, Godma, Astrophysical Reality
To check out all the poetry available on Dreamers, visit our poetry section.
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