Hospital Survival Guide

Going to hospital can be a daunting prospect for anyone…

Here are some helpful tips from two girls who have been to hospital lots of times for various medical tests and operations:

Beating Boredom

You’re most likely to be bored at some point during your hospital stay as you will probably be waiting around a lot. If you let yourself become bored you may feel sad and miss home, so try to beat boredom by keeping yourself busy. There are many things you can do from your bed or chair such as reading books or magazines, drawing, writing, doing crosswords, word searches or Sudoku, listening to music, playing a small board game (such as Snakes and Ladders) or card game or playing on a portable games console.

On most wards there will be a play specialist who’s job is to keep you busy.

                                                                         Feelings

Staying in hospital can make you feel many different emotions. You may feel sad, scared or lonely and you may miss home, family and even school. This is only natural so don’t feel shy or embarrassed about it. Remember to talk to your parents, a nurse or anyone else on the ward. Trying to keep yourself busy can help distract you from feeling these emotions, but if you're feeling down don’t be afraid to talk about it.

Remember it's okay to feel whatever you're feeling.

Fears 

If you’re afraid of a medical test or operation then tell your parents and your medical team so they can explain it to you in more detail and reassure you about it. Remember that the test or treatment will be done for your benefit not anyone else’s, so although it might not feel like a good thing beforehand, it will be so that the medical doctors and nurses can help to get you better.

           Thanks to Emma & Molly for taking the time to create this to help others survive a hospital stay!