DO NOT RESUSCITATE

How many times have we been asked this question when the doctors are taking our notes at the beginning of a consultation.  I know the first time I was ever asked this question, never before I got ipah, I was amazed to be asked and said well  YES I want you to try.  It made me wonder since I have had a few "episodes" if I felt the same way and would I answer the same.  My answer would still be yes please, do try.  I feel I have so much living still to do. So many memories to make that I will be able to leave behind for my family and friends.  

Once when I was in hospital a lady was in the bed opposite me and she was wearing a constant oxygen mask and her breathing was so terrible.  I overheard her being asked the question and her answer was no, do not attempt to bring me round,  She had a lovely family that would come in and paint her toe nails and do her hair.  She was younger than me.  One day I asked her why she had said no to the question and her answer was that there would be no point.  I often think about her and wonder if she is still with us, I doubt it though as I know how ill she was.  

I know how bad we can feel, I know I myself have at times gone to bed and told Colin I hope I don't wake up in the morning but then I wake and the day is different, I can do things, I can move my body, I can dress myself and get motivated. I also know too well how this can change.  I know there may come a time when I need more help, more hospital stays and the medicines will no longer work as can be the case.  That may be the time when I am asked THE question that I will say no, please don't even attempt to being me round.  For now though the answer is a definite YES, please do all you can, I want to live. I wonder how my other ph family answered the question.

How very true

Most of us with a chronic illness get asked the most stupid questions or get told how we can cure it.  Wishful thinking we can't.....yet, but here is a brilliant post.  Not sure who posted originally but thank you and many thanks to George Gaskin whose page I found it on.  Now George is our "resident" clown and I love to talk to him and when I saw he had posted this I just knew I really must share as it is so true and down to earth.  Just love it.  I bet George has been asked or told these things many a time as though terribly poorly with this disease it doesn't stop him living life to the full and having fun.  Some people will just assume there is not much wrong with him or tell him of the "cure".  

Please please if you don't open any other link open this one, the woman who does it is quite funny in her actions, brilliantly done: -

https://youtu.be/hlRD9loRV7w

Monday morning

I was going to ring my local doctor at 8.00 to see him about a minor problem but to also see if he has had news of my need for a 24 hour monitor.  This wasn't to be as the morning took a very different turn.

Woke early and decided to go up and give my neighbour Roy his complan.  On setting it down on his trolley, {the one it took us one and a half hours to find)  I noted a load of bloody tissues on the trolley and on the floor.  Thinking he had a bad nose bleed I decided to look further and saw his arms.  Oh my word, not a slight gash here but almost all of his right hand from the middle of his wrist to his elbows totally open around three inches wide and on his left a huge open wound. I woke him and checked further and saw how serious this was.  I knew that there was  certainly nothing I could do for this.  He needed proper treatment so I told him to dress immediately, not drink, (just in case) and then got myself dressed.

Colin understood but was a bit upset as he worried about me and he knew I was running on adrenalin and would pay the price but what could I do, I knew Roy should have gone to the hospital sooner.  Colin had an important date with sand and cement and a sewer at my daughters so there was nothing he could do. The story with Roy is that he slipped off his bed and banged himself on the trolley going down.  Now this happened at 11.15 at night so he didn't wish to bother us!  Sadly he did himself a lot of harm as by the time we reached A and E the wound could not be put back, I mean the skin could not be brought together.  After a good clean and many many sterastrips and plenty of padding a bandage was put on both arms.  Now his instructions are to not get them wet.  He was told they will take weeks, even months to heal as his skin is like tissue paper and he has very little flesh underneath.  He is also sporting the most enormous bruise on his jaw where he hit the trolley also, how fortunate he did not break it,  the jaw I mean! Now he has to have a district nurse come in to change the dressings.  His dream of going to his other house in Menorca has gone for the time being so guess what we will be doing next ...........

New Kitchen

He has decided to change all his kitchen and maybe build some sort of wall to separate it from his absolutely enormous lounge.  I so agree and as we had an agreement that if he dies before me we shall buy the property he wants us two to get involved with the designers!  This should be very exciting.  We however won't be buying this property as I so long for a garden but I shan't tell him this.  I am to get two designers up and we shall talk over all that the three of us need in this oh so super kitchen he will have, can't wait and it keeps his mind off going back to Menorca, where to be honest he is really not well enough to take care of himself.  I must say here though that the thought of Roy not being in the world is too awful to contemplate so I pray we are helping with the plans for a kitchen he will enjoy for many years to come. As I spend quite a lot of time with Roy I do appreciate the needs he has with regard to the kitchen so I can be of some help to get one that works for him.

Here she is  My Lady

I have brought her home, she is fired and now finished!  I don't think considering it is my first attempt that I did too bad a job.  Colin and Mike when they saw it both asked if I had had help.  My answer was an emphatic NO, Helen directs but she will not make it or interfere in any way.  I know that there are many imperfections but it doesn't matter, I made her!!!!

Now I have bowls and a plaque to paint and fire and then I shall ask if  can make another as I have learnt valuable lessons and know where I went wrong on this one, would love to have another attempt.

What do you think now Tony?

Fruit for kids

Once again many thanks to the person that posted this.  How brilliant and how easy.  I have begun a campaign with Sainsbury's to do just this.  I have sent out two e mails to two different addresses and am now waiting for a response.  I tire of seeing babies as young as around eight months old going around in the trolleys with their parents chomping on a do nut. {the child I mean not the parent}  Lets start healthy eating early and leave behind the cakes and biscuits.  Perhaps also if this happens instead of collecting a trolley that has the left over packet from a bag of crisps a child has just eaten that its parent left carelessly in the trolley for the likes of us to pick up before we can use it we shall see instead half eaten apples and banana skins.  Then we shall do what we always dutifully do, pick out the rubbish left by the person before us and discard it in the appropriate bin, which by the way is right by the trolley park and bin it. The worst thing I saw was last week, a dirty nappy and no I didn't pick it out and bin it, I left it and found another trolley.

Was I wong, I don't think so

I got a bit of stick this afternoon from the family of Roy for not ringing them when I first saw Roy.  In all honesty I answered that I didn't stop to think, I was in shock.  My first instinct was to get him the help he needed NOW and so off we went to my local A and E.  I also never thought when we were being sorted out. Roy was in shock, I was very concerned and anyway phones cannot be used in this department so had I thought it there was nothing I could do, I was not leaving him to make a call.  When all was done and we were driving home I asked him he wanted me to call Mathew, his answer was no, I want to go to sleep and Mathew will be here in a couple of hours anyway. So I did what I was told, got him to bed and as safe as he could be with a drink and I know he slept.  

I understand why the family were upset but I did what I did for Roy and at the end it was his decision not to let his family know then.  However I explained all that happened and why I didn't ring and at the end Mathew understood and we were friends again!   I am certainly not trying to interfere with the relationship between them all, I just wanted to do the best I could for Roy in the circumstances.

Well another day is dawning.  Today I SHALL ring my doctor and I shall also go for my LFT and INR, so much excitement ahead! 

Hope the day goes well for you all.

Once again thank you for reading and a HUGE thank you for the likes.

Carole xxxxxx