Sunday, June 27, 2010

Another Snippet of Nursing Home Life

Ms. M wheeled her chair over to the dining room table where I was sitting to feed my mom and said to me - I've been peeing all the time.  I pee all night and can't get any sleep. (Hey, I can identify with that sometimes.)  The preacher came yesterday and I told him about how I'm peeing all the time.  He said he'd pray about it, and do you know that I didn't pee but one time last night.
Me- Wow, that preacher must have a direct line to the man upstairs. 
Ms. M - Yep, but his line wasn't so direct when I told him about the problem with my leg, it took a whole lot longer for it to get better.

The next day:
Ms. M to me - Well, I peed again all night last night.  The nurses said they are giving me a medicine to make me pee because my feet are all swollen.


Odeladeeehoo....OOOOOddeelllaaaayyydeeeeeehoo......Odeladeeeeodeeelaaayyyyyyddeeeeodddelaydeeeehooooo!
I ran out into the hallway to see who was yodeling.  It was Ms. L who rarely ever even talks....... 
A sad story about Ms. L
When she first came to the nursing home, back last fall, her daughter came to eat dinner with her every night.  Her daughter (I'll call her D)  had just moved here from another state partly to help take care of her mom and partly to take care of her own health needs by being closer to her sister.  D brought food from Hardee's, Wendy's, etc... every night because her mom wouldn't eat the nursing home food.   D and this gentleman who volunteers there every evening (I'll call him J) formed a close friendship and began dating.  (J's story is fascinating - I'll tell it another time)  They would both come to the nursing home and visit with her mom and others who J was particularly fond of helping.   One day J couldn't get D to answer her phone so he went to her apartment and found her dead.  She had diabetes and perhaps passed out from a sugar low and hit her head on the coffee table.  Ms. L doesn't seem to understand what happened.  It took J several weeks before he could come to the nursing home without crying, but he's still there every evening.


Mother had a better day, yesterday.  Cross your fingers, throw salt over your shoulder, knock on wood, avoid walking under ladders, etc........  Hey, whatever works, right?  Oh yeah, you might say a prayer, too.  That's probably a little more likely to work.

2 comments:

  1. What a sad story, but I will do everything you said if it means your mom is perking up. Prayer is No. 1.

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  2. Your Mom continues to be in my prayers each day Julia ♥

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