Tuesday, August 12, 2008

Did you ever have one of those weekends?

This past weekend has been a bitch as far as I am concerned.

It all started Friday evening when I get a call about 4:30.  I find out that my grandfather had fallen out of his bed the night before and had been on the floor for at least 12 hours and possibly 18 hours.  My cousin asks me if I can help so I fly out the door.  Problem is that in St. George, it takes 20-30 minutes just to go 5 miles so by the time I make it there, my uncle had him picked up off the floor. 

Not long after that, my parents so up and decide to stay there the weekend to see how he is doing because he looks really ragged.

I find out on Sunday that my parents took him to the emergency room and that the X-rays show a "Compression Fracture of the Spine".  They tell me it is like broken ribs.  There is not much you can do for them but treat the pain. 

My Mom asked me if I could stay with them Sunday night to make sure everything is OK because she is a teacher and needs to get to Mesquite to get her classroom arranged.  I wasn't thrilled and plenty scared but there is no way I can say "No" to my mom.  I get there and the evening wasn't bad at all.

I help him get into bed they settle down for the night.  About 1:00 in the morning, my grandma calls me because grandpa needs to go to the bathroom and he can't move.  I try to swing the legs over the each of the bed but he starts howling in pain.  Right then and there I know I am in over my head and there is no help from anywhere.  It is so incredibly scary to realize that you are the only one and someone else in pain is depending on you.  After 30 minutes, I finally get him out of bed and get him taken care of.  I was able to get him back into bed but after that, I can't sleep.  Hearing him scream in such pain really got to me.

I had to do the same thing at 4:00 then again at 6:30.  Each time was as hard as the last.  That screaming doesn't get any easier.  I have come to label it "Heartless Compassion." 

I went home but called in sick.  I was to tired and my nerves were frazzled for me to concentrate on anything so I went back to bed.

I get a call about noon from an aunt saying they hadn't gotten out of bed yet so they needed me to help more.  By the time I got there they were out of bed but hungry.  I stayed there in the afternoon meanwhile trying to call insurance company to see what can be done about home care because the way things were going, they couldn't be left alone and everyone in the family had jobs.  While I am trying to learn as I go with insurance, my aunt is falling apart and the rest of the family seemed to be eating itself apart with all the tensions.  My parents decided to stay last night with my grandparents and took them to the doctor.  They have solved some of the problems and tomorrow, grandpa goes in to get an MRI.

Even today, I am having difficulty trying to cope with what happened yesterday and hearing someone howl in such pain.

I guess it comes down to this, growing old SUCKS!!!! 

1 comment:

Laurie said...

Oh my gosh, your poor grandpa! That's so awful that he was stuck for so long with fractured bones! That must have been terrible!

And poor you. I hope you get some rest tonight or hopefully after the MRI.