Socialization

Ought, Cough, Bough

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Wordle is a game that makes me happy. I found that thought in my head after finding the wordle answer a couple days ago. It matters not that I needed one guess or five guesses. There is no competition. (And yet there is someone on the World Wide Wait that needs to explain to me why it is popular.) It is a personal challenge. It is the first thing I open on my tablet in the morning, well, almost. Sometimes the book I was reading the night before opens itself and I read that for a little bit.

Cheryl is semi-sleeping now. I checked on her. She is “trying to decide” about getting up. We have no scheduled activities or she does not. Actually I do.

Early in the morning while she is in this mode, I have time to look at other things, check email, see what folks are whining about on Facebook. Facebook has a strange way of posting things on my “news feed”. Calendar time seems to have little to do with it, maybe, nothing to do with it. It must be a complicated algorithm. Ho Hum. After determining that there are no email, Facebook or other emergencies, I move on. It amuses me to notice how many folks will post something on a group page which might better be solved by picking up the phone, I look at WordPress to think and gain some inspiration to add to this blog of mine.

The statistics page is often of interest since much of the display intrigues me. Today this little display in the corner seems to report that someone in Thailand looked at my blog.

That in itself is not strange. Type a random thing into Google and it returns all sorts of unrelated finds. But all seven views were of an old post I entitled “Things that make you Happy” and I reread it this morning. I found inspiration in my own words.

Over the past weekend we visited with my cousin Bettie and her husband Herb. It is always a great time with family and friends that we do not see that often. Bettie’s house is perhaps forty-five miles away south and east. It is a pleasant drive through the northern Kentucky countryside and for Cheryl it is a far away destination. On this particular weekend the hurricane that crossed Florida and came ashore at Georgetown, South Carolina had spread its cloud deck inland to eastern Ohio and Kentucky.

On the start of our trek it was bright and sunny. I aimed the car south and east towards Bettie and Herb’s place and drove under the cloud deck. Watching to sun go down from their front porch and side deck was magnificent. My son remarked to me that he had not seen a rainbow before. I do not know whether he meant ever or as brilliant as this one was. It was perfect timing for a follow up question but I did not ask him. Carpe the missed diem.

Like most things I have taken pictures of with the smartphone’s camera, the pictures do not capture the magnificent colors that were produced by nature. The rainbow produced by the narrow view the sun had of the under side of the cloud deck and upper misty air was brilliant and exceedingly bright. The pictures simply do not do it justice. But being there with family and friends and watching a unique sunset made me happy.

Happy to be alive and happy I was able to share the moment with Cheryl.

Carpe Diem

Surrounded by Wonderful Loving People

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“Feeling blessed” – is a phrase I associate little with this disease of Parkinson but I am learning to understand the meaning of that phrase with respect to helping others and help from others. Cheryl used to tell her mother that there is grace in accepting help from others. (:-0) Once in a while I say this to Cheryl when she resists my aid.

It is easy to get caught up in “why me?” It is easy to not take note of all the kind and loving ways that people around you are willing to help in some small way. Most do not even hesitate. Wear your gray hair to the door of a restaurant and the guy coming the other way will hold it for you. Carry a walking aid or a cane to the same door and kids will jump up and open the door.

In our life with Parkinson we experience these small helps a lot. Cheryl wants to do for and help others even when they are helping her. There is goodness in everyone. Even when one is certain that the other person has not applied themselves and therefore did not achieve the expected benefit help is given without expectation of gratitude.

From the point of view of “little helps” everywhere often spontaneously offered to us, we are blessed.

Our friend Jane is a great help to me. She has organized a network of care around Cheryl and me. She has contacted many of the group of women that she and Cheryl used to play bridge with. Cheryl is unable to play bridge any longer. The game is simply too mentally taxing for her. We used to play Scrabble in the evening and I did not want to play because Cheryl would always, often anyway, kill me score-wise. With Scrabble and Bridge and other competitive thinking sorts of games, she excelled. Her math and logical brain rose to the challenge.

Jane and the rest have organized themselves into Wednesday visiting parties. Jane comes across the hall on Monday so that I can ride my bike or do whatever. Barb comes on the last Thursday of the month to take Cheryl to lunch. Cindy has been coming over on Thursday in the afternoon so I can go do whatever. I usually ride my bike in the warmer months. Linda has been coming on Wednesday but her sister is very ill and she needs to be with her. (She may not be with us much longer.) Jane is a blessing to us. As is Linda and Cindy and everyone of Cheryl’s friends.

Family …

My son and daughter-in-law have been a focus of my need to get Cheryl out away from our little condo on the weekend. David and Melissa are almost always available for a weekend visit. They live nearby in eastern Indiana. The drive to their place is such that I takes us through the fringe of the city into enough rural properties that here and there are planted corn and soybeans. It seems like a long trip to Cheryl. When we get home her reaction is much like coming home from a long trip.

A few evenings ago I invited a couple of Cheryl’s cousins for dinner. It was a great time. Steve and his wife Marisa sent an email just checking in on us a few weeks ago so I invited them for dinner. Cheryl insisted that I invite Lois who is another cousin from a different direction. 🙂 Lois, Steve and Risa did not know each other except through inference by family name(s). Lois and Steve are cousins to Cheryl but not to each other. Nevertheless the dinner was great. They found common reference by neighborhood. They physically do not live far apart.

Cheryl talks about Lois a lot and her mom Aunt Jean (great aunt). In her childhood she got a lot of hand me down clothes from that direction. Lois is a couple of years older. I may have mixed up the story a little. I am merely trying to track down some of these childhood stories before the people in them are gone. Marian and Tom, Steve’s mom and dad, are gone from this world. Their family is younger. I remember Steve as a boy coming to some of the long ago family gatherings at Sharon Woods Park. Lois is the last, I think, of her family. Her sister Maureen we used to see occasionally at Macy’s in Kenwood doing her supervisor shtick. She is gone.

As we move on and Cheryl resides mentally in her childhood, I have taken it upon myself to reconnect with these people. Many of whom I do not know personally except by my wife’s stories. And her memory is failing her in bits and pieces and fits and starts. I think it is becoming more urgent for me to do this and I do not know why I feel the need to do this other than it brings her great pleasure to talk and reminisce with her cousins. Her most pleasurable stories seem to revolve around the many large family gatherings and smaller group visits.

On my never ending journey to help Cheryl experience the best of her days even though Parkinson is trying to steal the memory of them from her.

Carpe Diem.

Bump and Run

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Interestingly to me anyway yesterday’s plan works today.  I suppose that overtime I will come to understand that what I want her to do and the speed I want her to do it are not hers so it can never be.

Today’s class is sitting cardiovascular motions.  I features the Beatles and the Righteous Brothers as accompaniment. Nice.

Spirit in the Sky

Carpe Diem.

Decision Making is Hard

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In Cheryl’s case,  decisions can be remarkably difficult. They are made worse by deadlines. Lack of understanding of the day or next event add on difficulty. The decision to day is – what to wear?

Parkinson is a big enough trial when it is only a mobility issue.  When cognitive function is affected. It is just plain harder. You as a care partner can help with calmness or not. That thought sent me off into mindfulness and discernment about how to help by not emphasizing the time.

Today is the date of the Sunflower Rev it up for Parkinson’s symposium.  It is an information and exercise presentation by UC Health in Cincinnati.  And we are getting a late start.

Although we had talked about it last night before bed and I had emphasized getting to bed on time, so that we could get up on time. Admittedly this morning I cared little about going to the symposium but it is a useful thing to Cheryl and occasionally I learn something new. When the alarm went off she awakened but showed little interest in getting up. After some reluctance I encouraged her to get up and have some cereal to get started.

The wild enthusiasm for life, a better life with Parkinson can be intimidating to those of us who through our new duties of care partner and might have been hoping for a more relaxed environment in later life. So when Cheryl started hinting at not feeling up to going I seized on it but perhaps a little to enthusiastically because she changed her mind with little time to spare and we left. But not before I gained the opportunity to point out the lateness of the hour.

Thank God for the great science interspersed between the impromptu exercise. The lecture portion is familiar and reminiscent of many college courses from my earlier years. Bliss.

In a presentation about new chemicals and old standard chemicals I notice that most have the same set of side effects.  The side benefits seem to alternate between diarrhea and constipation, insomnia and narcolepsy, yadda yadda yadda. Of course the doctors and scientists would prefer that patients not focus on the side benefits but those are still there whether you ignore them or not.

A gentleman told his personal story about PD and his journey. Being an ex-football player and wrestler in college he was attracted by the various boxing style PD programs. Rock Steady Boxing was founded in 2006 to empower people with Parkinson’s disease (PD) to fight back through a non-contact, boxing-style fitness regimen and emotional support. The program started in a tiny gym in Indianapolis, Indiana. His coach told him – If it is to be, it is up to me. (Inspirational) He and some others have formed a group – Romeo (retired old men eating out).  Social gatherings are important . One can never give up.

There are things you can do that will make things easier like, no button down shirts.

There’s no hope without data reported Kim who is a research scientist. I like the science. I hate the disease. I do not know where my attitude is today. Perhaps it is still in bed thinking about a Saturday sleep in and then a visit to my son’s house for the fantasy football draft festivities.

But it was worthwhile going.

Carpe Diem.

Overnight at the Lodge

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A few days ago the kids and grandkids camped at a nearby state park. Cheryl knew about it.  They had exchanged text messages back and forth while the planning went on. I did not talk seriously to Cheryl about it until the day before. If I give her too much to think about she becomes anxious with the planning activity.

I suggested we could stay overnight in the lodge there and visit the kiddos at the campground. She readily agree. I called the lodge desk and THEY HAD HANDICAPPED ACCESS rooms available. I did not ask about their cancellation policy. I was hopeful that Cheryl would still be interested in visiting the kiddos campsite when she woke up tomorrow.

The next day we went. It was a great day. I got the big bed pad out and packed it on the bottom of the big suitcase with extra incontinence solutions so that Cheryl would not have that anxiety all day long. On top of that she packed clothes for a week. Girls need choices. I packed a change of clothes in the little bit of space left in the suitcase.

We got there about 3:30-ish and found the room. I texted David and found out where their camp sites were and cruised through the campground twice after misreading the signs the first time through. We found them unloading coolers and tables and chairs and other stuff. Everybody was busy with something so I parked in an empty campsite across the little drive through the camping area. Luke was loading a cooler with soft drinks. Anna, Laurencia and Virginia were making quick work of erecting a couple tents.

Good times were soon to be had. Frisbee games were unloaded. Eric and Max tossed a baseball back and forth. Corn hole was set up. It is not camping if there is no corn hole set around.

There was great camp food. Our son, David, with Cheryl’s help, current veggies and sausage packets to place on the fire. Cheryl had a great time participating in the food preparation. For a short while she was Mom again. She was talking and cutting. Dad was hanging out with the grandkids and the other adults.

We had some great conversation around the campfire.  Parkinson disease interlaced with dementia takes most of the spontaneity out of our living activities these days. I had forgotten about that. I am sincerely grateful that Cheryl was feeling good that day and evening. We both miss the spontaneity of retirement.

And grateful that some of our hoped for spontaneity in retirement was there that day. Twenty-five years ago we would spontaneously decide to disappear on the weekend and hike in the woods or explore some little town we had not been to before. Once we stayed overnight in a bed and breakfast in Chilicothe, Ohio and the B & B was being run by others because the owner was going to Columbus overnight for a cancer treatment. So, we stayed overnight with strangers in someone else’s house. It was amusing and fun and spontaneous.

Carpe diem

An August Evening

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Rainy days in August have produced sundowner’s confusion and dementia. On this particular day it seems a bit worse.

Cheryl has had a particularly busy week. Two physical therapy visits and an exercise class happened this week. On Monday evening our HOA board had a meeting to discuss maintenance schedules and what new projects we could take on with the money on hand. Jane came across the hall and sat with Cheryl on our back porch while I attended. (Jane is a wonderful neighbor.)

On anything goes pizza Tuesday we had dinner with our neighbor Jane as usual and in addition our new upstairs neighbor Joe joined us. Joe moved into the front condo over the garage spaces. Much of getting to know you conversation happened. Cheryl knew of a woman which she attended high school with who had the same last name. Her name was Kathy. As it turned out she was Joe’s younger sister. Jane’s husband used to play in several bands when he was still alive many years ago and Joe’s last name was familiar to her also. As the story developed it became apparent that her husband John had played in a band with Joe’s father.

It was a great getting-to-know-the-neighbor conversation. There were lots of memories for Joe and from Jane and Cheryl. When we got home Cheryl was exhausted.

Wednesday, I had arranged for my cousin-in-law, Linda, to come and take Cheryl to her physical therapy appointment. I went to visit the lab of a local community college program that I am still involved with. That facility is twenty minutes or so down the highway and I was gone for about two hours. We later met back up in a local diner for lunch.

Thursday it was my intention to attend a exercise-for-care-partners class at Parkinson Community Fitness after Cheryl’s twelve pm exercise class. I had previously arranged for my daughter to pick up her mom so that Cheryl would not have to stay. I found out my class was canceled at the last minute so when Anna showed up we all went to lunch. Our grandson Max was with his mom and he showed off his new laptop he purchased for college. He will start in a couple weeks.

I had hoped to ride my bike for a bit so Anna and Max remained with Cheryl. Alas, the weather did not cooperate. As I entered our condo Anna was helping her mom sort coins. These had been residing on the dining room table for several days but the project was several weeks old. Cheryl found them back in her office a few days ago. Cheryl told her daughter that when they were finished they would give the coins to her dad. She used to help her dad roll coins from his gas station business many years ago.

Max was frustrated with his new laptop. The camera no longer worked. What ensued afterward was a chat via the internet with some Microsoft expert and ultimately a complete reload of the operating system. That seemed extreme to me but I am an old retired electrical guy whose been fooling around with systems, software and computers for fifty years or so. We are living in a new age now. Ultimately it was discovered that Lenovo had placed a privacy slider to cover the camera on the upper edge of the case. It was a mechanical failure or an operational one depending on who is characterizing the action.

On Friday I was still hoping to ride my bike and the weather was still not cooperating. Cindy came anyway And I went to get a haircut and run a few other errands. I returned about an hour later.

This whole week was generally gray and overcast. It was not gloomy like the wintertime but gray and rainy nevertheless. It is still rainy and poopy outside as I write this.

The rest of the day was filled with visions and stories of her family. She was looking for Scott. Later in the evening she told me a story about Easter eggs, coloring them and Mavis. She eventually called our daughter-in-law Mavis to ask about what her objection was to coloring Easter eggs.

Earlier in the evening she asked, “Where is Ken?” I told her that Ken was probably home but I was not sure. She should call him and talk to him. She did not take that suggestion.

It was a frustrating afternoon and evening for me. Later I realized after she had exhausted herself with a very busy sundowner episode that for the first time this week only I was here with her and she could relax and let all that out.

As she laid in the bed she asked me to make sure the kids all got home okay. This morning she slept until 10 am.

Carpe Diem.

So Is It Okay To?

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I am currently attending a class for care partners. It is put on for us folks dealing Parkinson’s disease interlaced with dementia and Alzheimer’s disease in our care givee. We have spent a lot of time on taking care of ourselves and making sure we are healthy mentally and emotionally as well as physically. It it easy lose track of those things when you become very involved in the day to day care of another.

Time away from care giving is very important but is it okay to change the social situation a bit and let people in that are in a similar place in their lives?

The idea of a support group meeting allows this to happen but there is a different social dynamic in a casual lunch, friends collected in a bar to solve world problems or gathered for card games with casual conversation. Support groups tend to try being informational rather than random conversation. Support groups that are attended by both the chronically ill patient and their care partner tend to be awkward somehow. If the care partner should feel the need to vent and whine a bit, they will feel embarrassed to do that.

Is it okay to change the social situation a bit and help the Parkinson person participate with you and others.

Admittedly it is a different dynamic. The caregiver has the social burden of not correcting their partner in conversation. Dementia does that to conversation. I want to jump in and save her from embarrassment. What if no one did that? To an outsider it might sound like a game of post office gone bad. So what?

If Frances was elected president then pumpkins would cheaper at the store. That’s true. That’s true and the police are trying to find new shoes for their cars. Those lights on top can fall off and the car hurts from that. Is there any ketchup for the ice cream? Did she bring extra napkins. I see a bug. Where is Scott? Is he coming? I have noticed that more and more people are married to our children. How many kids do you have? I have about fifty. Did you put up the sick people’s sign on the car? I need to make a list so that everyone knows what they are bringing to Thanksgiving dinner next week. I need to call Sr. Janet and remind her that the kids did not give us any raffle tickets.

And on and on. I used to jump in and help her with correct thinking or at least keep her from making embarrassing phone calls. The range of mismatched topics is endless and for some reason our kids turn up in it a lot as children. I also realized at some point I felt embarrassed. Cheryl did not. I stopped thinking seriously about it.

I actually think of this often. When Cheryl is out with her long term friends, people that she has known for many years but has not seen much over the past few, she puts on her “showtime” mantle and converses. When she returns home she is often exhausted from keeping that going. What if the social occasion did not require any sensate being to understand the conversation? What if there was no sense of or in it? Would she be less exhausted?

There are many things to ponder. Carpe Diem.

Past Few Days

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The past few days have been sleepless and disturbing. Cheryl has one of her meds that she has been taking for a long time seems to be bothering her at night and not allowing her to sleep. As we sleep in the same bed on the same mattress I do not get much rest either.

Two nights ago I gave into the thought that it was her Sinemet CR tabs that were both helpful overnight and disturbing her sleep. I discussed it with her and she wanted to try taking only one tab for overnight. She slept until about one o’clock and got up to go to the toilet. She came back to bed and slept until the seven o’clock alarm for morning meds.

Wow! Could it be that easy?

Last night we did the same thing. She did not get up at all. I had a little extra laundry to do in the morning but I did it with a full night of rest.

Now it is the weekend which should be a time to relax and rest but we have little to do on the weekend calendar. I lean on my kids. Cheryl has been talking about the kids all week. If I can I take her to visit.

My first thought is my son David. He has a wonderful backyard to sit and visit. My plan was to visit on Sunday but as we drove to our favorite place for a walk Cheryl said she would like to visit David. I had told her as we were driving along about visiting David tomorrow afternoon. Somehow that translated into today in the afternoon. I called David and he said sure.

We took our walk and sat on David’s back patio the rest of the afternoon.

Maybe tomorrow afternoon we can find Max’s ballgame and visit Anna’s family.

Carpe Diem.

Another Lunch with Friends

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A good friend of Cheryl’s from church organized another luncheon with her and another mutual friend today.

Back in the bygone days of younger kiddos and the everyday working world, Cheryl was part of the group of women (mostly) who decorated the church for various holy days or other events in the church calendar. Often Cheryl’s job was to clean and press and arrange the alter cloths just so. The group would spend an evening or Saturday decorating the church for the occasion.

These days are gone for her and the decorating committee and St. Ann’s sodality has thinned over the years. Today however Cheryl and Barb are hooking up with Diana, the team leader, who has moved to a retirement community with her husband on the other side of town.

It gave me time to experiment with banana bread and fool around with other things. Maybe even blog a little.

Carpe Diem.

More AHA Moments – Boats

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Cheryl told me she is scared to be on her brother’s boat.

Recently Cheryl’s youngest brother invited her and the rest of her living clan and clan-in-laws for an evening ride on his pontoon boat that he moors in a small man made lake near his home in southern Indiana. I am always on the hunt for things to do with her that let her socialize a bit out of and away from our little condominium living situation.

Since Ken’s text message came to me on the family text chat, I told her what he proposed. Cheryl responded with, “I will think about it.” This is a phrase that she learned from her mother as a small child and she has used throughout our fifty years of marriage and many times during our child rearing years. Roughly translated it means “NO” or “no thank you.” But being the polite person that she is, she does not want to hurt anyone’s feelings, she rarely says no directly. (She also learned this from her mom.)

Cheryl has a lot of her mother’s traits. She does not want to put anyone out. She does not want to offend anyone. She can be angry with me as could her mother when she thinks that is appropriate, as when I am being pushy. She does not want anyone to stifle their good time by worrying about her welfare. She is okay with isolating herself to (her perception) benefit others. She enjoys the presence of small children even if the small children are unsatisfied and complaining about it. She enjoys the presence of big children and wants to be a part of their life even if the big children are uninterested in letting her in. She likes big family gatherings.

Most recently she has a new special Parkinson’s patient walker to help her move around with steadiness. After her appointment with her MDS neurologist on her birthday several days ago, I ordered this for her. In the picture is her new U-Step. I should have gained my AHA here since I just ordered this over the phone three days ago. (I am buying her a stabilized walker and suggesting we go on a boat that will wobble every time someone moves.)

U-Step walkers are designed specifically for folks with PD to give them a strong base to walk with and against

But, getting back on track, she said to me that she is scared to be on Ken’s boat. That is the first time she has ever expressed that to me.

AHA MOMENT – Occasionally these pop up and I cannot always understand her needs. Prescience is not a strong trait of mine. But imagine for a minute, here is a person with balance issues and I am promoting going on to a less stable surface than she is used to. She can lose her balance and fall backwards when changing positions in our living room. Our building is built on a slab. It is hard to get a more stable surface. AHA (you moron).

Ken caught on pretty quick and proposed dinner tonight on the deck at Willie’s restaurant next to the puddle (his term for the man made lake.) Tonight is anything goes pizza Tuesday. Willie’s fits into the anything goes part of pizza Tuesday.

We will go tonight and take the new walker for practice and hopefully greater stability.

Carpe Diem.

Once in a while the road seems straight even when it is not.

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