J.J.

I’ve heard it said that from the moment we’re born we are dying. One day the thought occurred to me that maybe I was dying just a little bit faster than I should be.

I began to realize that something wasn’t quite right when I started to wake up abruptly in the middle of the night with my heart beating wildly. I was terrified and I didn’t know why.

During the day it seemed that my memory was failing and it appeared that it was more than the usual age related or stress related memory lapses. I was irritable, I couldn’t process thoughts and ideas coherently, I had bags and dark circles under my eyes and I wanted to sleep, all the time.

I had the vague knowledge that I had been like this for a very long time. If I had known then what I know now my health and my quality of life these past few years might have been very different. Fortunately for me a friend suggested I call Independent Respiratory Services Inc. in Vernon, B.C. I met with a registered respiratory therapist at IRS. That initial meeting resulted in a discovery so profound that it’s not an exaggeration to say that my life wasn’t just changed for the better that day. My life was saved that day.

That was two years ago. I was treated for Sleep Apnea and over the past two years I have been privileged to get to know my therapist and the staff at IRS very well. The caring and professionalism that I have received by everyone at IRS has exceeded my every expectation. From the moment I walked in the door I knew that I was in a very special place. It lacked that cold, austere “clinical” feeling. The staff at IRS are friendly and personable. They are people who care about others. It shows. I know because I have experienced that care first hand. Everyone at IRS has always treated me with respect, compassion and dignity.

One person in particular at IRS impressed me as someone who epitomizes what a health care professional should be. When you encounter an individual who cares not because it’s their job but because it’s their calling, you consider yourself very fortunate. My therapist is someone who is called to care. I have been especially blessed to know and be treated by my therapist. Her thorough knowledge and ability to impart and convey that knowledge is evident. Through her easy going and kind nature she has been a significant factor in my motivation for continued treatment. My therapist possesses that unique ability to combine professionalism with compassion. I can honestly say that I know her not only as a trusted health care professional but that I am proud to be able to call her my friend as well.

I have a brand new life now. My treatment is ongoing and my health continues to improve. I am forever grateful to my therapist and IRS for everything that they have done for me. They have shown me that when you help a life it’s no small thing but when you save a life it’s everything.