Have things happened in caregiving that you can look back on and laugh at now?
Had just gotten a hoyer to lift my husband. Wanted to put him in bed from his wheelchair. Started lifting him up, he started wheezing, as he has COPD , I asked him if he needed his breathing medicine. He shook his head no....he also has garbled speech due to PSP disease. I couldn't get the wheelchair to move away from him. Realized the sling was caught on the arms....fixed that. Started over....got him up in the air to move him...he started wheezing again...once again....do you need your breathing medicine? He shook his head no....continued to jack him up...tried to move the wheelchair out of the way....WTF...the wheel chair was moving on its own off the ground....OMG...I forgot to unbuckle his seatbelt ! Poor guy..and he was so good about it...I felt so bad for him.
Anyone else do stupid stuff too, that you can look back on and laugh about?
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But yes, lots of funny things happen when you are trying to care for an elder. My father being a construction worker, often could trouble shoot equipment problems. He actually liked contributing in this way--he would laugh and say what would you do without me??:) He maintained a good sense of humor.
You might want to see if you can purchase a battery driven lift, they are very easy to use. You can find them with a bit of luck for sale, they can be too pricey at full price and most people only use them for a yr or so .
It's fine to see the humor in caregiving. Take care of yourself.
Tonight the seatbelt was off and she wouldn't stand up....oh dear, the sleeve of her night was caught on the wheel chair handle....poor lady. I'm always apologize for my crazy requests.
My dad was in & out of the hospital, inpatient & outpatient, for transfusions & complications of leukemia & subdural hematoma brain surgeries. I'm a father's daughter, and was a fixture in the hospital - anything I could do for my Dad. We could Always find laughable "faux pas" at the hospital.
Ya'know the column in Reader's Digest - "Laughter is the Best Medicine".
And, healthy aging is being able to laugh at ourselves. My dad had great wit & wisdom.
There are a lot of emotionally-rich moments in caregiving. Those disinclined to caregive are missing out - and ignorant to what's coming in their own lives. None of us are getting younger.
Right after my dad's first brain surgery & was in ICU with his head bandaged, the surgeon made rounds and told Dad "Mr. M., you've just had brain surgery," Dad was sharp and said "Well, it's about time."
Another time I had taken Dad to Outpatient Oncology for yet another transfusion - and the nice nurse was taking the intake info, and asked if he had Shortness Of Breath. He thought about it, hemmed & hawed, and said "Well sometimes". So the nurse wrote "SOB" on the chart. Dad could read this upside down over the chair arm rest, and said "Well, if you don't like me, just tell me," I'm laughing as I type this. I had sent this SOB one to Reader's Digest, Laughter Is The Best Medicine - and they never published it.... guess it was too "risque" for them. LOL
On other occasions I have received such warnings as ."Don't go in the kitchen the white cat will get you" "Don't get out of the car, honk your horn till her husband comes out" "Don't lift up the tray beside her bed" - there were cockroaches underneath. One lady called and said she hadn't had anything to eat all day, this was at midnight and she wanted a tomato sandwich. What did you do I was asked at the next staff meeting. " I put a tomato in my pocket and went to make her one" of course she only took one bite. One of our local pharmacists was very good about coming out in the middle of the night and one night I called his home because his daughter was on call and she had recently had a baby. He did not answer and the daughter came in. Next morning I received an irate call from his wife reaming me out for calling the daughter and told me she did not like having her husband go out at night and unlocking the shop because he was sixty five and too old for this kind of thing. I managed NOT to tell her that I was sixty seven and did not like driving around the lonely countryside with narcotics in my car. All in a days or should I say nights work!
the elder and want to reverse the aging process. However, once I realized I was only there to care for him through the aging process, make it as pleasant as possible, lots of the frustrations were lessened. Change only what you, the adult child had change, and enjoy the special extra time you have with your parent. It can be an enriching experience--- but the exhausting bull work of care (the lifting, the bathing, the endless laundry, the meal prep, the small medical crisis which occur are all there too. However, the extra time with an elder is priceless and when they pass, yes you are free but they aren't there to speak to or laugh with. The satisfaction that you made their final days (yrs) the best they could be does give the caregiver peace of mind and heart. Too many seniors are alone as they walk the final miles of life---nobody really cares for them in a loving manner. I try to pray for these poor souls each day as they surely need it.
But being the sport I was, I acted as a fellow soldier and helped him in to the boat. We rowed to the nearest ship and were brought aboard.
I will always remember that, because the staff couldn't believe that I would help him out. I told them, "He's my Dad, and is stressed about this, so of course I will help."
Everyone should remember the good times.
There is a story about Rainbow Bridge. If any of you get the chance. Read it. The story is the reason I can laugh and remember the good times. Don't dwell on the last moments. My Dad wouldn't want me to. He would want me to laugh at those times, because when he was in his right mind; he did.
It is so hard to find humor. Madeaa, I have gotten to like you so much through your responses. I don't believe that Miller's word were malicious. My daughter is living with me a short while between graduate school and getting a grown-up job. It helps so much keeping a balance of emotions. When one of us is about ready to scream the other either steps in or lightens the mood. I am trying to prepare myself when she leaves by attempting to react differently so I can find humor through the complaining. I don't know if I can do it but sharing the silly things that happen to us might help. Hugs!
He came out of the office , which is next to the bathroom and said ..."sh** my pants! ". I thought OMG ! This can't be happening . ...he said "no...sh*** my pants!" ...and had me go in the office and showed me on the computer that ' they had SHIPPED his pants! ...thank god!... I only wished now ...years later that he meant the same thing :)
My father had Alz, the last Christmas season he was still living at home, my mother and I took him to several Christmas productions within our community. One in particular was a classical choir. There is a certain etiquette with classical musical one should follow. A soprano sang the first song followed by several songs as a choir, then the soprano stood up a second time and began her song....my father, rather loudly, said...Oh no, not again,LOL!!! I laughed , my mother was mortified (being very serious of nature). I stalled my mom from leaving until the soprano had finished her song, as that is what is considered appropriate at a classical performance. We received many dirty looks from others around us...I didn't care because they didn't know the situation, LOL!!