Medical student's voice note for late mom after matching with her desired residency is a tear-jerker

The only way people who lost their loved ones find solace is by holding on to their memories and reminiscing about them. Though everyone has their own way of coping with a loss, it's common for many to talk, text or leave a voice note to their late loved one as if they exist. Recently, one such heartwarming incident left the internet in tears. The University of Utah Health shared a wholesome video of a medical student, Paighton Noel calling her late mom to say that she had matched with her desired hospital for residency. 

Noel lost her mom Jacqueline Sorrells on October 7th, 2022 due to an unexpected accident at work which led to a brain injury. Having lost her "best friend and confidant" even before she could finish her university medical program, Noel felt the need to include her mom in the celebration of yet another milestone in her life. In the video shared by the university, we can see Noel grinning from ear to ear when breaking the happy news to her mom about her being accepted to a medical program at the University of Utah in 2020. Feeling elated and overwhelmed at the same time, Sorrells said, "How many tears did you cry? And I said, 'Just stay positive, just stay positive, it's gonna happen, I know it's gonna happen. I can feel it.'"

"Oh I wish you would have a little more faith in yourself because I have a lot in you," Sorrells reassured her daughter in the phone call back then. Four years later, on March 15th, when Noel matched with the hospital of her choice for her residency as an OB-GYN, she didn't have her mom with her to share it. However, that didn't stop the medical student from filling her mom in on the big news. The video shows Noel leaving a voice message on her mom's number saying, "Hey Mom. It's me. I'm going to be an OB-GYN at UNC, Chapel Hill."  She added, "Regardless of where I ended up today, you were going to look out for me and get me to where I needed to go." 

After being overwhelmed by happiness on the Match Day, Noel "needed some time" with her mom, as per Good Morning America. For any medical student looking forward to doing their residency or fellowship in the U.S., Match Day is an extremely exciting yet anxiety-filled day. That was the case for Noel too and it made her reach out to her mom. "It just felt like it would be crazy to not include her at that moment. Even though it might sound odd to call my deceased mother, I just felt like I was missing my person and my person's my mom," Noel told the media channel. 

Speaking of coping with her mom's loss, Noel said, "It is 100% okay to have it feel horrible and incomplete. And it's also 100% okay to feel the joy and celebrate that accomplishment or that holiday because they would want you to." For Noel, even the simplest ways like leaving a voice note, to keep her mom in the loop throughout her life's milestones have helped greatly. "Everything is bittersweet," she added.