VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — The oncology unit at Sentara Virginia Beach General Hospital is a place that can be hard on the heart for patients, families, and the nurses who care for them.
Arielle Damasco Morton 26, has been in and out of this unit for a year with non-Hodgkins lymphoma. She started chemo last year right after her wedding.
Her nurse, Sangita Seaburg, has been taking care of her during her time here.
"You walk into the room and [Arielle] sees you. If she recognizes you, she gives the biggest smile," said Sangita.
While smiles are hard to come by these days, Sangita says she feels privileged to work with families in times like this.
"The ability... to help families, the appreciation that you get from them. It's just heartwarming," she said.
Perhaps they sense a kindred heart in Sangita, as she too has suffered such a loss. Her husband Warren, a well-known Virginia Beach musician, developed bladder cancer right after they were married. He managed to beat it, until the doctor gave them heartbreaking news in 2011.
"He told me we had anywhere from a week to a month," Sangita recalled.
Abby Dalton was one of the nurses who took care of Sangita's husband at Sentara Virginia Beach General Hospital.
"[Sangita] had kids at home to take care of - the younger ones - but she kept vigil at his bedside," Dalton recalled.
Sangita says the care she and her husband received went well beyond medicine.
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"They didn't just take care of my husband, they took care of all of us," said Sangita. "One of the night nurses would come out and come and get my daughter, bring her to the nurses' station, give her a snack and french braid her hair."
The care her family received in the oncology unit left such a strong impression on Sangita that she wanted to offer back what she had received.
"My situation won't change. What I've gone through is what I've gone through, so I can sit home and cry about it or do something positive," she said.
The now-single mom of three decided to go to nursing school.
"I still remember writing my name on the board the very first time and I was the nurse," recalled Sangita. "It was petrifying because now people's lives are in my hands."
But her husband's former nurse, now her nurse supervisor, knew Sangita was the right person for the job.
"She has a gift. She is able to talk to patients in a way that nobody else can really talk to them," said Dalton.
For families like Arielle's, who are going through the worst of times, having Sangita there is comforting.
"It's nice to be able to use what I've gone through to help other people," said Sangita.
