Thursday, March 28, 2024 | Ramadan 17, 1445 H
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EDITOR IN CHIEF- ABDULLAH BIN SALIM AL SHUEILI

Waste of Waiting

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Nizar al Musalmy-


nizar.nmh.musalmy@gmail.com -


A waiting time is a period between when an action is requested and when it actually happens.


To many, that period can be a hurting experience and to others, it can be simply a waste.


Take, earlier this month, as an example, when I visited a health centre for a complete medical check-up. I knew it was going to take some time, so I allocated a full hour.


The receptionist took my card and pointed me to a male waiting area. I picked an old magazine as I sat down to wait. I finished the magazine then took another. I made myself visible to the receptionist to remind her that I was still around but she ignored my presence and continued with her work on her PC. When my entire hour was almost up, I heard my name being called and was escorted to the doctor’s room by a nurse. I was told to lie down on a small bed. Now with no magazine to read, I waited for some more time.


After a while, the doctor dashed in. “How are you feeling?” he asked, getting down to business by fastening a blood pressure gauge around my arm.


“OK” was my reply although in my heart I said, “How would you feel if some arrogant fellow kept you waiting more than one hour for an appointment that was scheduled a month ago?”


As he took my blood pressure reading, he shook his head. “Do you use a lot of salt?” He asked without looking at me.


“No, I don’t use a lot of salt.” And quickly told him I don’t smoke either. I went on to tell him my true history that never before was my blood pressure reading been that high.


What I experienced that day is what I call ‘Waste of Waiting’ i.e. the “wear and tear” of my health as I was trying to adjust to a changing environment which resulted to a short-term jump in blood pressure. In short, my blood pressure was abnormally high that day because of being stressed out by the waste of waiting.


The consequences of my failure to adapt to a changing condition led to perceiving a discrepancy between the demands of the situation and the resources available. This “wear and tear” had an impact throughout that day. My condition worsened and I felt sick. And then I began to wonder if it was worth going to the doctors if my health would deteriorate by visiting them.


Good health is largely in your hands. You should take the waiting time as an advantage and receive it positively as a relaxation time. That time of waiting should be used as good time to enjoy the reading of the magazines, ponder on the fact that we have the doctors, medical facilities and the medicines for our use, without which we could not lead a healthy life.


Experts are of the opinion that stress can be managed by regular exercise, relaxation, and time-outs. Each of us, for the most part, go through the same situations of frustrations, failures, and sorrows but we should always be kind and gentle with ourselves. We should Spend our lives living!


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