The perils of too much information

Two days ago, one of the people working with Suzy mentioned "ARDS," acute respiritory distress syndrome. Last night I got around to doing a little research, and it was chilling:

Despite the best effort of the best doctors, nurses and family members, approximately 40% of ARDS victims succumb to their acute illness.

Ouch! That's grim. I spent all morning today fretting about this new unheard-of syndrome, with a mortality rate higher than the liver failure.

Well, I got to the hospital today and immediately questioned the staff about Suzy's condition and ARDS. I was reassured by three different staffers that she does not currently suffer from ARDS. Maybe I heard them saying they wanted to make sure she didn't get it? Who knows. Just a pointed reminder to try to avoid getting too caught up in this emotional roller coaster.