Surprise, I'm not dead. I had some moments of wanting to give up as life felt a bit stressful since my last post. I've just completed 6 weeks of a caregivers workshop to discover that caregivers have to take care of themselves.
First let me catch you up on Mama and life in general. Someone at Caregivers saw my blog and said it was time to update it. I had to take some time off as being a caregiver and POA is more involved than I thought.
It's felt like such a long journey since this all started 6/30/14. Her doctor ignored her symptons for 3 weeks. We ended up at Prime Care who later sent us to the hospital. Yep they admitted her 7/19. From there she went to rehab for several weeks. Who knew that a UTI in your 90's could be so major and cause so many issues and personality changes. She was confused, disoriented, refused to eat or drink fluids. Wouldn't take her meds. She had good moments and some hard to deal with moments. Mama had never been sick and so independent and all of a sudden we were going along and fell in a big hole. Felt like we would never climb out but we did. In rehab she got broncitis and once again was hard to deal with. For over a week, she forgot how to answer a phone, button a blouse, hold a spoon, do normal things. She begged to die and wanted to go to Hospice.
There is life ahead. Mama turned the corner and August 20, 2014 she was headed to a new home. We made a quick decision to move her to Creekside Terrace Independent Living. Medical and Therapy did not feel she could go home alone and prepare meals, etc.
She is no longer in "Failure to Thrive" but rather she is thriving in a new environment that is lovely and her studio apt. is the talk of the staff.
Mama celebrated her 92nd. b'day there, 9/21/2014. It was celebrated with a cake and balloons. She's having fun I think. They do lot of singing, hanging out, chatting and meeting people who knew someone she knew. She has lovely meals prepared by the chef with nice choices and she just has to show up to enjoy them. Someone cleans her apt. weekly and changes the linens that they provide.
Recently she painted a pumpkin, yep my mama being crafty.
It's now 11/3/14. Mama has been in her new home about 2.5 months and is adjusting and loving her new life.
I must say she adjusted even within the first month better than her daughter did. I felt so darn guilty for not taking her back home but on the advice of everyone, it was best to go from rehab to the new place. Looking back, it must have been meant to be that the remainder of her life should be in a pretty place with lots of new friends.
Mama has lived in her little house, built in 1928, since she arrived in 1946 from Cuba and now it's for sale. So much cutier in the spring and with more furniture and hanging baskets. Anyone need a little 5 room house, 1 bath?
Later I'll tell you what I've been up to while I've tried to get back to my life. That's for checking on me and for hanging around.
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