I was stunned by the photos and the stories that Mark brought back from Haiti.  I laughed when he told me he slept on a ramshackle reclining chair with mosquito netting over his face (He HATES mosquitoes and bad sleeping arrangements).  I was proud of him when he told me he tried to make each cast a special color and design for his young patients.  I was stunned when I saw the photos of this ruined city.  Instead of uploading photos to annholm.net, which I learned is not that easy to do, I thought I would provide the direct link to the album on my Facebook page. Click the following link.  The album is titled, “I Wish Haiti Had a Reset Button”

**** Also, thank you to everyone who prayed for him  and who also tried to arrange for  Mark’s safe return when it was looking a little “shakey baba” .  I appreciated the support!

The doctors in Haiti continue to perform surgery 15 hours per day.  Many of their patients require amputations and many are children. The patients have been amazing despite all that they have endured. It has been said that Haiti will be a generation of amputees.  Clearly, that appears to be the case and many of them will need prosthetic devices down the line.  Surgeries are being performed both in the hospital and surgical tents.  It has been very hot each day, making the working conditions especially challenging.

These doctors are making a difference!  In Mark’s case, he packed a few extra items to guarantee his best work.   He plays his Ipod during surgery through a small speaker system he squeezed into his luggage because music is like Popeye’s spinach; it energizes and focuses him. He also packed the Club Helm flag, the official banner for a group of  our friends who wish to send their good vibes to Haiti, even though they can’t be there themselves.   The Club Helm “Board Members” elected to send it to Haiti on a humanitarian mission rather than take it to the outdoor hockey game in Madison, Wisconsin, a more typical destination for the flag.

The days are long and there is no air conditioning in the surgical tents.  I cannot imagine what it’s like to concentrate with unrelenting heat and no end in sight to the number of people who require surgery.   The needs of the Haitian people will not be fully met for a very long time and their needs will extend well beyond this initial phase of disaster relief.  It is overwhelming to think so much has been done during this medical mission but it’s like a taking a brick out of the pyramids: what remains is enormous!

The plane that brought them in sustained damage so new plans have to be made to get them back to the United States on Tuesday.  Hopefully, all will go well so Mark can go on his scheduled ski trip to Colorado with our son Andrew on Thursday.  Cool mountain air will probably feel like heaven.

I received a call from Mark tonight.  He had a safe trip to Haiti aboard a jet donated by a private citizen.  It took a collaborative effort and donations of time, money, and supplies from many generous people to make this trip possible.

They were mobbed at the airport by people looking for help of all sorts: food, money, whatever they could get. Meanwhile, the doctors have been performing surgeries 15 hours per day. The hospital is “decent” and there are teams from Mississippi, North Carolina, Seattle, and Italy. Mark commented that the  injured are putting up with lots of pain as they wait for help but they have been patient. They are in hospital rooms, in the hallways, out on the hospital porch, and in the park.  There are few emergency amputations, only revisions of existing procedures.  There are plenty of  other broken bones requiring attention. Also, they are slowly getting organized making sure the surgical patients receive follow-up care.  At first, it was difficult to do surgery and also monitor the recovery of those who had already had a procedure. They are close to the U.S. Embassy at this point.  They expect to see worse conditions when they travel to outlying areas.  One could see fires tonight, about a mile from the hospital, and Mark speculated that they were  burning those who had perished in the earthquake.

I will blog about this tomorrow once I receive photos. All he had for me tonight was the photo of the plane. Mark has always wanted to be a pilot (and I have always protested insisting it was dangerous),  so I am not surprised he sent me this picture first.  He is forever a funny guy.

On January 28th, my husband will go to Haiti for 10 days to perform surgery on the victims of the recent earthquake in that country.  It is impossible to imagine what he will encounter when he gets there.  Haiti was not in good shape prior to this disaster but now he will probably see enough death, destruction, and human suffering that would rattle most people.  Mark is no stranger to less than optimal conditions having worked in an inner-city trauma hospital in Detroit;  several Jamaican medical missions; and as part of a team performing surgery in Honduras.  This is likely to be much worse though.  It will be hot. Food and sanitation might be limited.  There will probably be bodies not yet recovered from the rubble. The people will be desperate.   How does one keep the edge amid all of this misery?

My husband is a pretty introverted guy.  He is polite but often intimidating when you first meet him. He has South Dakota manners but he is not one to schmooze or chit chat when we have company.  Once he has said hello,  he will quickly disappear into his lair to do medical charts, look at antique cars or trains on Ebay or watch the History Channel.  However, once you get to know him, he can be quite engaging and he is actually quite a prankster.  Still, much of the time he is quite contained.

However,Mark has an incredible capacity to focus especially under the most demanding circumstances.  In 1991, during the Halloween blizzard in Minnesota, he performed 25 emergency surgeries on hands that had gotten caught in snow blowers.  He did them one right after the other for 36 hours straight. I used to think he pushed himself to the limit so he could earn “suffering points” and I would then have to treat him extra nice but I have learned such is not the case.  The harder he has to work, the more competent he becomes.  He also sets high standards for himself and those around him. At times, this can be nerve- wracking for our family. As one daughter put it, “Every time he walks in the door, I feel like I have to be doing something!”  However, once he casts his critical eye, he usually moves on to one of his projects and we can all relax!

Haiti has the right man for the job. I have no doubt that Mark will relish the challenge of repairing as many orthopaedic injuries as he can despite the deplorable conditions he is likely to face.  It is probably to his advantage that he tends to be stoic because otherwise, he might become overwhelmed.  I am somewhat concerned about his safety but I know he is wired for this type of work.  Ever since he missed the first opportunity to go because he left his phone in the car for 2 days (typical), he has been pacing around looking for the inroad.  Now that the plan is set, he is energized.  So off you go, Mark E. Holm, M.D.!  I hope they can find a bed long enough to handle your 6 foot 5 frame!  Probably not…

Since many of my blogs are about the unique gifts of each Myers-Briggs personality type, I might as well reveal Mark’s type.  He is an INTJ, the master of focus, hard work and ingenuity. I know he will use these strengths to bring relief to the victims of this earthquake. Our family is very proud of him!

Everyone procrastinates; some do so rarely and others battle it all of the time.  For some MBTI personality types, particularly the ENTP and ENFP types, procrastination is omnipresent.  For these types, there always seems to be a monkey on the back or an alligator snapping at the knees waiting to be addressed.  That is because these two types have   extraverted intuition as the dominant cognitive process. The ENTP and the ENFP are always scanning the external environment for something more interesting, amusing or new.   The brain is literally lit up when a new experience is present and conversely, it is lulled to sleep when an old task has to be completed or is excessively repetitive.    People procrastinate because they can’t find the focus to do what needs to be done.  In the world of a dominant extraverted intuitive, possibilities present themselves almost constantly with procrastination being a natural byproduct of these distractions.

Now what happens when an ENTP type and an ENFP type, two professional procrastinators get together to get work done? Here is the amazing story of Lockdown 2010.   I am an ENFP and I had work that had been hanging over my head for 6 weeks.  My friend, an ENTP,  had a project that had hung over her head for much longer than that.  We both knew that we would feel the sense of accomplishment once it was done.  However recall,  taking something off the “TO DO” list isn’t necessarily the driving force that spurs a dominant extraverted intuitive into action.  It’s the newness. The fun. We can start off with the best of intentions but easily get sidetracked by something interesting to read,  lunch with a fascinating companion, a new project.   Anything is better than dotting the “i’s” or crossing the “t’s”.   We knew we had to make it fun. (more…)

Every so often, I get the opportunity to enjoy a meal or a cup of coffee with former patients and clients.  Not only do I like to see how they are doing but it feels like I am visiting with an old friend. Today I saw the Magnificent Mr. O  (due to privacy laws I can’t reveal his name but the “O” stands for optimism) who clearly has had more than his share of trials in life.  In his late 20′s, he was diagnosed with a lymphoma requiring surgery and radiation to his neck. The resulting scar tissue caused his carotid artery to narrow so at the age of 44, he suffered a massive stroke leaving the left side of his body paralyzed and his doctors skeptical that he would ever walk again. Along with that came cognitive deficits that impaired his ability to return to his job as a top executive in a large company.   After taking not one but two major hits in his life, it would be understandable  for this man to give up and accept his limitations.  But the prospect of being unable to walk or return to meaningful work was far more frightening to him than the effort and attitude it would take get better….

When I last worked with Mr. O, not only had he learned to walk  again, he was preparing to return to his job as an executive.  No one would have predicted this, given the level of his initial disability but he proved everyone wrong.  We should have known he would surpass our expectations because whatever goal we set for him in rehab therapy, he would accomplish twice as well and in half the time. For example, I remember when physical therapy gave him the goal to walk around the block at least one time during the weekend.  When we returned the following Monday, he had taken several 2 mile walks!  There were countless times when he did more than we asked him to do and there was joy in accepting the challenge.  Although he didn’t particularly like the predicament that he was in, he did appear more alive when he had summon his greatest resources to solve the problem. (more…)

On the Minnesota Test for Diffferential Diagnosis of Aphasia, a test used to measure language skills after a stroke or brain injury, one of the questions elicits a short language sample: Name 3 things a good citizen should do. The best response I ever received was, “Vote, pay taxes and delight your wife.”

Gene M. was one of my first “official” patients after I completed my speech therapy training in 1986.  He was receiving treatment for liver cancer but a stroke unexpectedly added to a growing  list of health problems. Even though he died 23 years ago,he remains one of my favorite patients of all time. When I met him, I was captured by his personal energy, and among other attributes, his incredible grasp of the 3 pillars of conscietious  living: vote, pay taxes and delight your wife.Here is what I learned from Gene about each one of these:

Vote: We all had the privilege of voting for a new president this past November. Gene thought it was “crazy” to pass up the opportunity to be heard. Likewise, he felt it was important to support whoever was in office regardless of personal political leanings. He knew the names of all of the presidents and he never scoffed in disrespect about any of them. His personal favorite was Abraham Lincoln and by the time we finished our therapy relationship, I had read 3 large books about Lincoln all from Gene’s personal “presidential library.”  He had a reverence for the Office of President that would be considered absurdly out of style by today’s standards. While our new president, Barrack Obama is enjoying considerable popularity now, I would not be the least bit surprised if some faction seeks to discredit him before too long. In fact, if I may borrow one of my late grandmother’s famous sayings, “Why if (Gene) were alive today, he would be turning over in his grave” if he knew that all Presidents these days eventually end up in some sort of scandal, real or made-up. (more…)

It is not merely a cliche’ that one must look for the rainbow after a rainstorm.

Once upon a time, a perfect little smooth fox terrier puppy was born in California. Her spectacular face was half-black and half-white; even one eye had black eye lashes and the other had white ones. She was  lucky puppy who got  to fly first-class to her new digs in Minnesota (a family friend brought her home with him after a business trip).  “What a gorgeous, perfect puppy”, everyone on the plane remarked.

Piccadilly was a smart, spunky, and agile dog. She quickly learned tricks such as jumping through a hoop, playing dead, and rolling over. She could leap from chair to chair as easily as a squirrel jumps from tree branch to tree branch.  Her family said, “She is so smart, clever and athletic that we should make her a circus puppy. Maybe she could perform at half-time at an NBA basketball game someday!” Her family had seen other dogs perform at half-time at the Target Center so they had big plans to take her to agility school so she could learn all of those nifty maneuvers.

Then one day, something terrible happened to this perfect fox terrier. It started out as pain in her right paw. Within 12 hours, it had progressed into full paralysis on the right side of her body. Piccadilly was suffering from a spinal cord stroke (an FCE, to be exact). This once nearly perfect show quality dog laid on her side, panting and unable to get up.  Her doctors said she would probably never be the same and they warned that her course of rehabilitation would be extensive. Was she worth keeping or was it best to just let her go? (more…)

I had a life coach once upon a time. He was my coach long before life coaching became an actual profession.  He wrote me a life-changing letter that I have kept in a fireproof safe for over 30 years.  I want to share it with you now:

March 16, 1977

Dear Ann,

Why should a father want his daughter to get the best grades she is capapble of achieving?  I suppose that some fathers want their daughters to perform well in school so they can say to people they know…”Isn’t my daughter something special? She’s pretty; she’s popular and she’s very bright! Look how well she’ doing in school!”

But fathers who push their daughters to perform well in school simply to brag to their friends are, themselves, not very bright! Afterall, it’s really just an act of God if a daughter happens to be pretty or popular or athletic or bright. Why should a father take credit for that? And, in a broader sense, wouldn’t a father be a rather shallow person if he had to live his life through the accomplishments of his children?

But my reason for wanting you to do as well in school as you can is totally different. I want you to learn all you can and get good grades because, by doing so, you will improve the quality of your life. In other words, I want you to work hard for your benefit, not for mine.

You know, when girls reach their teens, many of them begin to feel their fathers are rather dumb. Fathers and sometimes mothers, are often looked at as being old-fashioned, not very smart, and certainly not in tune with what’s going on. Afterall, fathers are pretty old guys whose own teen-age experiences happened a long, long time ago. And since fathers were never girls, they certainly cannot be expected to know what is really important to a young lady today. Perhaps you feel that way too—it’s only human nature that you do. Let me tell you that as you look backwards ten years from now, you will have an entirely different perspective. (more…)