Mom & I Versus Whatever Happens
March 2024 Issue
Inspirations for Better Living
I keep a small journal tucked in the compartment of my driver’s side car door. The navy cover measures about 5”x7” and opens to business card slots on the left side and a memo pad with a pen on the right. The business cards filling the slots tell the story of Mom’s cardiovascular history and other ailments. Dated 10/2/2017, the first entry in the notepad marks the end of a five-year stint on hormone blocking medication related to her victorious battle with breast cancer. She is a tough lady. No matter what family, friends, or fate throws at her, she can handle it. Growing old may be the hardest thing she’s had to handle to date. Watching Mom grow old is hard for me.
I take Mom to all her doctor’s appointments. A couple of years ago I only took her to the ones in the city because she was uncomfortable driving in heavy traffic. Now my presence is more about helping her comprehend what the medical professionals are saying rather than about traffic conditions. I get it. They throw a lot of technical jargon at you in a short amount of time. They also like to adjust her medication dosages, which can get confusing. We must rely on the notes in my journal, instead of the instructions on the bottle, to make sure she’s taking her medicine correctly.
Mom has a lengthy list of medication she takes for assorted reasons. She often asks me what this one is for or what that one is for. Thank goodness I have the internet. It only takes a few minutes to look all of them up on the computer and create a document listing the name, what it treats, and any other pertinent information. I printed off a copy of the list for her and saved it to the cloud for me. I keep as much of her medical information as I can on my computer, including medical power of attorney and DNR instructions.
Mom taught me how to be prepared a long time ago.
