Sometimes life throws you a curveball, and you realize you are unprepared. When was the lesson on "Aging Parents"? I think I missed that one in school! I am blessed to have relatively healthy parents, but as they move through their 80's there have definitely been some hiccups.
Last month I was on a trip to see family and friends back in Buffalo, NY. This trip was extended after my mom caught a pretty bad case of pneumonia + sepsis and landed up in the ER and hospital for a few days. Now that she's home again, we are piecemealing her recovery care which has not been easy. But we are managing. I am one of 5 siblings who have all moved out of our hometown state of New York. We are now spread out in California, New Mexico, Georgia, and South Carolina. I passed the baton to my older sister from Georgia, and now she will give it to my younger sister flying in from California next. Whew!
I am also in the Sandwich Generation. The sandwich generation is a group of middle-aged adults who care for both their aging parents and their own children. I guess I missed the lesson on this one too!
Thank goodness my mom should make a full recovery from her pneumonia! However, I am upset that her regular doctor missed the boat - instead of seeing her in person, she wanted to do a Tele-med call where it was recommended my mom take Mucenix and saline spray. I took her to Urgent Care and then the ER at the insistence of my husband, Mark, an ER nurse who sees this diagnosis in many elderly patients right now.
I feel that because of the Pandemic, our immune systems are not what they once were, and we need to build back up our immunity to fight all these germs. I think the elderly should have in-person visits, not Tele-med calls when they are sick, and be treated with a little extra care during the winter season. It was only four days after having high tea in Canada that my mom was in the hospital. Scary how fast it happened.
But here comes the part of the story that has the JOY and LOVE and LAUGHTER I felt during the middle of this whirlwind!
Mark knew how stressful it was for me to be alone at my mom's house while trying to understand, make plans and deal with this situation. After a long day, I sat down to eat dinner and played this video that he had sent me. I laughed so hard. I had tears streaming down my face, and I replayed it over and over again.
Note: Mark gave me permission to share this video! I truly hope if you are reading this blog and you are having a hard day or going through a similar situation, you can have a laugh and smile as well.
And if you've followed any of my Facebook or Instagram Lives, you know exactly what this spoof is about. The funny thing about this is that it's so unexpected from him, which makes me love him even more!
After 28 days, it is good to be home!
xo
Andrea