tinyjo: (Default)
Emptied of expectation. Relax. ([personal profile] tinyjo) wrote2004-02-07 06:06 pm

Over for now

Well, the visit was both better and worse than I feared. I started off by arriving about 20 minutes before Mum and Dad, meaning I had to make slightly stilted chitchat with Grandad for a little. He wasn't doing that well himself having got a chest infection and not realised that his inhaler had run out yesterday so he was very wheezy. Mum and Dad arrived at nearly the same time as the community nurse who reassured us that his new meds hadn't quite kicked in yet and promised to pop in tomorrow.

It turned out that visiting hours in Nan's new ward didn't start until 3:30 so we stayed with Grandad for lunch and chatted and fussed the dogs until it was time to head to the hospital. Nan herself didn't seem in pain when we saw her, just very tired and frail. Aparently they "nearly lost her" on Thursday but she's stable now, if not well enough to go home. They're not really sure of what caused her to collapse but they're varying her meds and investigating. She said that when they were calling to her while she was coming round she wished that she could just stay gone where it was peaceful.

When I mentioned a plan for April she said she didn't expect to see it and when Mum demurred she responded "I hope not, love. I'm fed up of this". For her sake, I hope not too. She deserves to rest.

[identity profile] celestialweasel.livejournal.com 2004-02-07 10:53 am (UTC)(link)
You have my sympathy. It sounds about as good as could be expected under the circumstances, these things are rarely dramatic in my experience. There is a very good Dave Barry piece which I unfortunately can't find on the net, about his last conversation with his father. The general gist is that it wasn't a deep and profound conversation, it was the sort of conversation they always had.

[identity profile] mr-snips.livejournal.com 2004-02-07 07:36 pm (UTC)(link)
For whatever it's worth, I do know what this is like.

My sympathies.

Re:

[identity profile] celestialweasel.livejournal.com 2004-02-08 02:04 am (UTC)(link)
We, and therefore parents, grandparents, etc. are all getting old :-)

thinking of you all

[identity profile] vinaigrettegirl.livejournal.com 2004-02-08 05:22 am (UTC)(link)
God bless you. Until we see things for ourselves it is so hard to believe that people do get as tired of the struggle for life as your Nan is now.

I'm glad you have support from Alex, and that your Nan and your Mum have you there. You're in luck that you are able to make the journey - she isn't 10,000 miles away and it isn't snowing like crazy as it was not that long ago. That must be a huge relief. It may be that your Nan has some type of unfinished business; I'm sure you will be able to help her with it, if that's the case. Just being there is, however, the main thing: good for you, and agian, God bless.