Oh goodness me! This post was really intended for publication on the Care Community page! The Monday morning gremlins are clearly on the warpath. But as I've already had a couple of 'likes' and responses, I'll leave it here too for today!
It's a stark Monday morning out there for me here on the south coast. A steel-grey sky typical of November. My husband who migrated here 10 years ago makes me laugh as he still cannot sort out our seasons. In Guyana, where he's from, it's always hot and dry or hot and wet, so it's oh so simple, but he constantly asks what season 'it's supposed to be' here now, as the weather just will not conform to any kind of seasonal description that he recognises.
Welcome to any and all who have just joined us or taken the time to post here this week. We've had contact from several people previously little known or unknown to me which has been great and I hope you've felt welcome and supported by us.
News on my home front with my sister is good. You might remember we had a family crisis after she had a serious slip and fall accident, and is the carer for her husband with mixed dementia.
I'm now in communication with her in hospital and she's doing really well and getting around on a walking frame with not too much pain. She's had one or two small setbacks, but if those are resolved, might even make it home before too long.
And meantime at her home, social services are assessing their living situation and coming up with solutions for their practical problems so that, with a little help, they will still be able to be independent until she hopefully makes an even better recovery.
Her own children who have been helping out were dismayed as many of us are at the struggle there was to make Social Services realise the size of the emergency and the speed with which help was needed. Leaving aside social services' difficulties in being so overstretched, that can't be an excuse when it reaches a point that a partially sighted man with a middle-stage dementia is about to have to be left at home to cope alone. But finally, at the eleventh hour help arrived.
I'm sure that many of you have also faced this knife-edge situation in a crisis.
So here we are on the fresh page of a Monday morning. It's likely to be a quiet one for all of us in England in particular, but for all of us, I hope we can all find some enjoyment in our coming week. Take care everyone and stay safe and positive! 🙏👍🌈😊
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Good morning I'm glad your sisters on the mend and at last help is at hand for them, hopefully things will improve in social care and as with people living longer more are struggling with this and it's not easy finding suitable care homes me and my sister had issues with a very unhelpful unsympathetic social worker long story but luckily my dad was able to stay in the care home near family and park which he loved as much as me where he felt safe and happier, which he went to on respite from hospital and as he was self paid the social worker wanted his room basically and assessed he should go home he needed 24/7 care. Sending loving thoughts to you and your family 🌟
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Thank you so much Curly1_ and I'm not surprised to hear that you've had your own struggle with issues in Caring. I will pass on your good wishes to my family too, as sometimes just knowing that the wider world cares about you can give you an enormous boost! 🙏
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Yes there is a lot in the power of thought and knowing we are recieving nice thoughts is always uplifting too🌟🙏
So sorry to hear about your sister,I am very glad things are moving along for her. When you mentioned how confusing the seasons are for your husband, it brought a smile to my face as I have never really thought about how difficult it must be to fathom, if you are not use to it. It started of very bright here this morning but now it is overcast. This morning it was a summer's day, this afternoon, is a autumn day and who knows, we could have snow tonight making it a winter's night. You can certainly get all seasons thrown into one day here. 👍😊
Hi bobbybob it’s true that we are used to four seasons in one day! 😄Thanks for your good wishes for my sister and I’ll be sure to pass them on. Even when a good wish comes from someone you don’t know, it still means an awful lot! 🙏
Oh my goodness Sue, care was on a knife edge, I'm so glad it's all sorted now, it really is fight isn't it.
I'm so glad your sister is on the mend.
Sending you and your family my thoughts.
Alicia 🙏🙏
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Thanks for your good wishes Alicia. Yes everything was balanced on a knife edge and actually had it not been for the fact that my niece was suddenly furloughed and able to stay with her dad, things would have been even more fraught. It's not a surprise to me. I moderate over at the Care Community (whence my post was really meant to be headed), and it's such a common story. It's a kind of hidden one too, as carers really are silent heroes who often have to fight for basic services. Anyway, in this case, things aren't too bad and we can count ourselves lucky.
I'll pass your good wishes on to my sister, because as I also said to bobbybobb, it's just lovely to know how many people wish you well, even when they are strangers to you, and it's a real boost to know that! 🙏
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Who would have thought furlough would have been fortuitous, I'm so glad your niece was able to stay with her dad.
I couldn't agree more that they are silent heroes. I have a friend that's been run ragged since her mum had a stroke about 7 years ago now. She's been doing the lion's share of the care, she has a sister but my friend has been doing most of the care. Then this year she lost her dad so her mum is now on her own so the care gets even harder.
Thank you and yes please pass on my thoughts and best wishes, caring is incredibly difficult.
Thanks so much for your good wishes Jerry. I think this has been a pivotal moment for my sister's household. She's been holding the fort for too long on her own and hiding the struggle of caring for my brother-in-law. Now her closest family understand too and will be helping them both more in future. I'll pass along your good wishes as they all add up to a lovely warm feeling of caring.
It must have been so challenging to have just moved and found yourself in virtual isolation, and then in lockdown, albeit in a very beautiful location, and it does take time to work through big moves, and especially those we make on our own. But here you are, weathering the storm and now even enjoying your new neighbours' companionship.
It's very hard not to try to push covid19 away, from our lives and our thoughts, and it's not often we are required by external forces to do exactly as we are told and to be in real danger of death. But it's probably a good lesson for us all, if a very harsh one. Several years ago there was an absolutely fabulous ad on TV for the Red Cross which was quite dark, and went, 'I'm a crisis and I don't care who you are'. For me, that seems to sum up covid19!
Take care Jerry and together this thing will be beaten, as mankind has beaten so many crises over the years.
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Quotation for Monday 1st June 2020