Report!

Eleven days of not posting is hardly a record for me (unfortunately), but I don't like that it's been so long nonetheless.

Things here are still progressing: Grandmother has one more visit each with the VNA (Visiting Nurse: comes to take blood, monitor her vitals, overly explain simple things as if Grandmother is either a child or hasn't been taking a particular medication for the past fifteen years), HHA (Home Health Aide: comes to help Grandmother take a shower, has introduced her to the joys of conditioner specifically made for curly hair), and OT (Occupational Therapist: tries to convince Grandmother that her entire way of moving her body - quickly, unbalanced and without her walker - is putting her in danger. Even though she understands this, it does not mean that she makes the changes the OT recommends - except when the OT is here watching her) and by the end of this week the only outside treatment she should still be receiving is her PT (Physical Therapist: "The only one whose said anything that's actually helpful"). While I am looking forward to things slowing down here -


Quick Aside: Why is it that you are expected to be your most active during or immediately following a serious health related incident? I first noticed this phenomenon after a hospitalization about 13 years ago for pneumonia - when the nurses insisted I get up and walk around, even though I told them I would pass out if I tried to walk around normally. Of course I did pass out, but I was still supposed to try it every couple of hours. And then again, after I had my appendix out, the doctor decided that would be a good time for me to "get back on my feet" and prescribed PT, even though I was so sick following the surgery that I couldn't get out of my chair without crying. And this time, post TIA, my Grandmother is being required to exercise more than she has in probably the last 10 years - exercises and walks and constant visitors that make scheduling a nap difficult. Why do we make it so that the people who need the most rest barely get any at all? And why don't therapists and doctors and such take your previous (to incident/illness/reason that they are there) activity levels into account? /rant

- I am also kind of leery of what it will mean once nobody is coming in. Grandmother works best with the promise/threat of having to report back to somebody; once those people (she calls them her "drill sergeants," of which I am (sadly) one, because I have to constantly keep reminding her to take her "friend" the walker with her. She hates that thing with a burning passion) are no longer here to provide that threat, how is she going to do? It's a worry, but she's also scared of not getting any better, so hopefully that'll keep her motivated. Plus, I'm not leaving yet. (And even when I do, we'll set something up so that I can be checking up on her more... I hope.)

But that's our progress report: On the mend. Definitely.

I'll hopefully be back later to talk a little bit about something else, anything else, but since I've been here, a lot of the rest of my world has been put on hold, so I'll have to really think of something that doesn't involve therapists of any kind.

Miss you, internets: thanks for keeping me (semi)sane.