Stories from Caregivers: Lu from MICHIGAN
MI
Lu
FROM MICHIGAN
It was no longer save for my mother, Jane, to drive a car. A casual observer would think that nothing was wrong, however, Jane had suffered the effects of 2 strokes. Many times she mixed up her dreams with reality. Like the time she called me with panic in her voice wondering if I was okay. Her inner thoughts made her constantly anxious and more often than not, negative toward family members. It made the most sense to us to make sure she was well taken care of in what seemed like the cream of the crop homes for assisted living. For the most part I became the only one available to take her to doctor's appointments or on outings and always making sure she was enjoying her new living arrangements. We learned quickly to use a notebook, which we left in her apartment, so that if another family member did visit they could read what our visit with Mom had been like and if any information needed to be passed on to others. That was after another family member took Mom to the eye doctor, and never told me that Mom needed special eye drops put into her eyes to prevent any infection after cataract surgery. Lucky for Mom, nothing bad happened. The photo is a special outing for an ice cream treat when my sister from out-of-state came for a visit.
