Judy Dercksen
Family Physician
Writer
Living with Complex PTSD
Life is for learning. Nurture your spirit.
I made my way past the medical and surgical wards to the outpatient department, my Adidas squelching on worn yellow linoleum. The smell of disinfectant leached from the walls. I pushed open the double wooden doors and entered the large hall, where forty men waited on rows of wooden benches harder than church pews. They hooted and hollered when they saw me. “Dr. Kipla Broek!”
A neighbour comes out her front door and we wave our greetings. She’s one of my patients and suddenly I think of the hospital, where I’d usually be this time on a Sunday morning. Guilt arrives, tainting my pleasure.
About Me
I am a white ex-South African, now Canadian citizen. Writing about racism and apartheid in South Africa led me to an understanding of myself and complex PTSD. Chronic pain management is another passion of mine. I worked as a family doctor in Quesnel for 22 years and now practice virtual and pain medicine on Vancouver Island.
Judy Dercksen 