Weekly Chat (Non-Osprey), 7 November 2021

It never ceases to amaze me how each of us bears our daily sufferings, throughout all our lives. The stamp of our suffering is part of what forms who we are along with the joys we find in our daily lives. The sharing of pains and joys with others who care is what gives our earthly life its precious meaning.

I'm relieved the hospital visit that OG endured with such grace is over followed by blessed sleep. The KEY drama, what can be said except that I have lived that, but the frustrations with daily caregiving and dementia are hard to imagine. Though you have no choice, AQ, I admire you nonetheless.

Elusive sleep. Another aging dilemma. My arsenal includes yoga, breathing, melatonin, weed edibles.

Elusive sleep ... my arsenal also includes BBC World Service and a good book!

Have had to sign in again today, the 2nd time this week. Yesterday when on my desktop, the whole Site stubbornly refused to recognise me and/or my passwords, & I had to give up!!

My arsenal for sleep includes some which might surprise:
A feather bed so that I'm cocooned as soon as I climb in.

A single bed right next to my OHs, so that we don't disturb each other when we rise in the night (inevitable these days!!)

A hand cream which does not stimulate my senses too much when I smell it in the night.

No pyjamas or nightie. I began sleeping nude some years ago when it was extremely hot, and found it better whatever the temperature outside the bed. Apparently your body regulates itself better. If it's cold, I slap a blanket on top of my duvet. I keep a nightie beside me for wearing as soon as I rise. My OH has adopted this too now, except he wears boxers when it's freezing temps!!

Oh, and tell yourself about a whole list of things which are off limits for consideration in the darkness, including stubborn children, regrets over past actions, worrying about health of yourself or others, climate change, covid, politics and of course, ageing!! LOL!!

I'm with PAT - BBC World Service radio playing quietly on the pillow on the other side of the bed. It is on all night and I find that listening to it stops the ' busy brain' that often comes with insomnia. All the worries that you describe so well, LINDY.... And I can fall asleep with it talking away. It's not for everyone ( like sleeping in the buff! ) but I'm somehow comforted by it.

Oh my - the things we share!  :-))    My OH and I have separate rooms because our going to bed/waking up schedules are so different.  And I started sleeping in nighties (cotton only) when my grandchildren were old enough to spend nights at my house and would wake me very early in the mornings.  Can't see the appeal of pjs at all.  

AQ: I empathize with you.  Is dementia a mostly male complaint?  Seems like it from what I read on here.  My OH didn't remember who Chuck Schumer was the other day (Senate Majority Leader for the Democrats).

Lindybird:  Stubborn children? Health worries for all   Politics and climate change? Are you sure you aren't channeling me in the wee hours?  :-)  

CC: I find Savasana a great way to head off a potentially 'busy brain' night.  But ibuprofen p.m. has also helped.when aches show up (as in after a day of ripping out a massive protea).

Heather: I'll go with a book; very brave of you to take on the BBC World News at night; I'd be having anxiety attacks if I tried that, but I often listen to PM on BBC4, which comes on live at 9 a.m. our time.

Emboldened by yesterday's gardening success, today I'm going to go after a schefflera which was 6" tall in a terrarium when I got it in 1978. Now it gets into a fight once a year with some overhead cables, which I can handle, but this last year it's started upsetting the brick planter behind the house.   Am going to gird my loins with a muffin and coffee....

Got held up with various tasks (mostly food/shopping related) yesterday and then again today - am okay and will try again tomorrow!

Annette: There's a launch of a new crew to the Space Station tonight. Coverage begins soon, but the launch itself will be at 6:03 p.m. California time.

Diane: Thanks! I'll take a look. :-)

Gosh, sometimes I forget they're all swimming around above us, still!

Good luck to them.