Mum mending nicely
So I had 3 days of running around. I didn't have to do any personal care for Mum - she and Dad managed that between them - but I made pretty much every cup of tea/ did the washing up/ did the fetching and carrying. This meant Dad could go out for the daily paper in the morning, go to orchestra in the evening and even have a little lie down one afternoon.
When I arrived, Mum was dressed and sitting in a chair but not able to do much more than read the paper and talk about her condition & what/ whether she wanted to eat and drink. Every so often she would get up and go for a little walk around the living room. By the time my sister arrived to take over on Thursday afternoon, Mum was a lot brighter. She'd done several jigsaw puzzles on my ipad and was able to play "Oh Hell!" with us that evening.
As we were playing I discovered a funny rash on my arm. It got worse and spread and turns out to be shingles. Bother! I now have the right medication and it should improve by the end of the weekend.
When I called Mum last night to see how she was and to check if everyone has had chicken pox (they have) she was sounding much more like herself and able to give me good advice about how to look after it.
Dad looked a lot less tired by the time I left, and says he is now comfortable to leave Mum by herself for half/ three quarters of an hour while he fetches the paper. My sister will stay until Sunday afternoon and her husband can do Monday and Tuesday.
Dad would like to get to the point where he can leave Mum for 2 hours or so (e.g. to do the shopping or go to a rehearsal) and would quite like a trial go at that before being left to cope alone, so we'll see how the next few days go and work out from that when I next need to go down.
Thank-you all for your kind thoughts and wishes, it has really helped me stay positive.
When I arrived, Mum was dressed and sitting in a chair but not able to do much more than read the paper and talk about her condition & what/ whether she wanted to eat and drink. Every so often she would get up and go for a little walk around the living room. By the time my sister arrived to take over on Thursday afternoon, Mum was a lot brighter. She'd done several jigsaw puzzles on my ipad and was able to play "Oh Hell!" with us that evening.
As we were playing I discovered a funny rash on my arm. It got worse and spread and turns out to be shingles. Bother! I now have the right medication and it should improve by the end of the weekend.
When I called Mum last night to see how she was and to check if everyone has had chicken pox (they have) she was sounding much more like herself and able to give me good advice about how to look after it.
Dad looked a lot less tired by the time I left, and says he is now comfortable to leave Mum by herself for half/ three quarters of an hour while he fetches the paper. My sister will stay until Sunday afternoon and her husband can do Monday and Tuesday.
Dad would like to get to the point where he can leave Mum for 2 hours or so (e.g. to do the shopping or go to a rehearsal) and would quite like a trial go at that before being left to cope alone, so we'll see how the next few days go and work out from that when I next need to go down.
Thank-you all for your kind thoughts and wishes, it has really helped me stay positive.