Weekly Chat (Non-Osprey), 29 August 2021

Sorry, put on a repeat picture here, so rubbed it out!

Lindybird said:

My OH: "Shoot me first...."

That is Limpy's view - it was also my late mother's.  I don't dwell on it, though I have a lurking dread of ever being diagnosed with dementia.

Clare: These places are often full of very caring staff, but are depressing nevertheless.

My poor mother, who had a dread of ever losing her vitality and mobility, had several bad strokes which left her wheelchair bound and helpless, and then finally, unable to even eat, and so had to be cared for - I couldn't do it at home, she was in too bad a state. My mother in law had a dread of ever losing her mind, and she, poor soul, got dementia and so had a miserable last three years and had to be in several establishments, each getting more and more grim.

Only a joke!  I'm sure its never like that, LOL!!

I'm so sorry, Lindy. My late mother-in-law had Alzheimer's and ended up in two (excellent) care homes - we couldn't fault them. What was so terrible was the treatment she received outside of the care home - it was as though she was (to quote Orwell) an unperson. Every time she had something wrong with her the local hospital refused to admit her ('we've got nowhere secure to put her') and the local doctor would say 'it's all part of the Alzheimer's'. A scan in the last month of her life showed that she was riddled with cancer - she'd been trying to tell the care home staff she was in pain but she could no longer speak and had been indicating the wrong part of her body. The care home staff, to their credit, were certain something else was seriously wrong but they felt the general attitude to them was 'only carers, what do they know?' whenever they tried calling a doctor. Makes you dread getting old.

Dementia is truly scary, as is constant pain. Can't imagine BOTH simultaneously.
My dad suffered for years far away from me, but had good care until he died at 93.
My mom died a day before her 65th bday, in a car accident.

I would take my mom's route, but... we do not have the choice.
You know when you are in your later years when you don't dread death, but realize it's the suffering that's scary.

That said, it's also the moments of joy and levity shared among friends, as happens here, that make life precious.
I have a fat monarch caterpillar by the front door in milkweed, ready to pupate and turn into a chrysalis. :-) That's what I have to share at the moment!

Morning all. How can it be Saturday - again! It keeps happening. The saying in our house is, "Is I ever (fill in the blank), take me out and shoot me." Of course, we've both achieved several of the 'if I ever...." scenarios and we don't have any guns, so.......

CC: Welcome to the thread. Good that you didn't have to worry about your Dad, but awful about your mom. Meanwhile, you have monarch butterflies in your neighborhood? May I ask where you live?

Annette -- We've been laughing here, as we used to say "If I ever forget things....." and lately, we've had to keep reminding each other of things, as it's become an every day thing for both of us. Now, I just accept that we are ageing, and one of the things about that is constantly forgetting names, and why we've just gone into a room for something, etc.