Caregiving January 23

Well, we are in the deep freeze here in Minnesota. I miss those days of traveling south for the winter. We traveled hard and fast south to get out of the freezing cold, but we also traveled hard and fast the closer we got to Mesa. Luann didn’t drive much, but was very good at backing the motorhome into our parking place so it got into the right position. One year, we had to stop in Redfield, SD, because of the weather for the night. It got down to -12. We had on all the blankets and did lots of snuggling. As we traveled, I would get up early and drive for a couple of hours, then stop and get gas and breakfast for us. Coffee was a must for her in the morning. I’d love to go back south again, but driving is out of the question until my nerves in my arm decide to wake up and stop sleeping. Because of this problem, I have learned what doctors and therapists learn first in school: “It takes time. Be patient. “

My folder for January files looked bigger, and I thought I had set a record for copied files for this month, but there are only 70. Caregiving websites seem to follow a certain topic, or better yet it is God giving them direction on what topics to focus on. Amazing how the websites follow what I’m thinking about. In the spring of 2024, as Luann was preparing to move to Assisted Living, I was concerned about loneliness for her. All that summer the websites I use focused a lot on the topic of loneliness. This past November and December dealt more with grief and handling loss at the holidays. I found that there is a 21 percent higher chance of death, especially for cardiac patients during this time.

In this newsletter, I am going to share some reminders on being prepared for emergencies and having files updated. Please remember that if you are interested in certain topics, there is a great chance I have a file on it that I can share. As a minister, I am bound by the rule of confidentiality. I had the same responsibility when I was teaching. I understand, and have had members leave our group because of the death of their loved one, or they disagreed with my suggestions. If you have reached the end of your caregiving responsibilities and feel you don’t need this anymore, just let me know. However, I want to ask this question: Have you discussed your care with your children? Do you have a plan, and are your children understanding what to do? My son, my oldest child, tells me that his daughter calls him regularly and has a plan. His oldest son is out of state and doesn’t call much. I belong to an online caregiver group that I helped facilitate long ago when I joined at the beginning of Covid. Because of the constant change of facilitators and meeting days, it is not as effective and organized. I had a very short thought of being a facilitator, but with the help of my children, and I agree, it would be too much for me. I think I was looking for an excuse not to do it, so I left it up to the kids, and I give them credit for making me listen. Great strategy. I suggest you use that one .

One last thing: last night as I went downstairs to play cards with neighbors, a woman had fallen in the hallway. She was wearing sandals that made her trip. Not a good idea. She had a bloody nose and bit her lip when she went down face first. I went and grabbed my first aid kit. After checking her out for any pain or weakness, she wanted to get up. First, don’t rush to do that. Make sure that there is no hidden problems that can make it worse. Two guys her hand and forearm and I stopped them. Wrong way. Lift with the upper arm and under arm. A third person to help lift around the waist or holding belt or belt loops. I was no help because of my arm, and when they couldn’t I called 911. If you don’t do it right , there is a great chance of causing more problems and you have less control grabbing the lower arm. IT IS BEST TO CALL 911 AND HAVE FIRE DEPT. COME DO THE LIFT. DO SOME CHECKING SO YOU ARE PREPARED. BE SAFE NOT SORRY.