Got call this afternoon from my ma telling me that my g'ma had fallen in her house & broken her hip. I was fearing the worst, but looking back now, I realize I didn't have any kind of sinking feeling about it. Having just come back from visiting her in the hospital, I know why - she's one tough ol' bird! When I got there, it was the doctor, a nurse, my ma & a family friend who's also a nurse and has been working/helping/visiting with my g'ma for years now.
They were going through her medical history & the doc said he was shocked (paraphrased) at how healthy she was - that he had patients in their 50s who are much worse. And then he said something that really surprised me; he made a comment that he also couldn't believe she hadn't wanted any pain meds yet! My 96 yr old (97 in December) g'ma with a broken (as in, clean break, things moving about) hip was just lying there, telling us it didn't really hurt! My ma said that when they were loading her into the ambulance, they had to give her a shot & told her it was going to hurt a bit, and she didn't even flinch. It's crazy!
Anyway, she's going in for surgery tomorrow morning, and it's only supposed to be 1-1.5 hrs. They're going to put in a rod/screw contraption of some sort, then she'll have a few days at the hospital to recover, and then they'll send her to a rehab facility for another 21 days. The family now has to figure out whether it'll be better for her to go to a round-the-clock care facility, or back to her house with a 24hr "nurse watch". I actually think that will be less expensive, and I know for a fact that it's what she wants. She's told me in the past that she wants to die in her house, just like my g'pa did, and I don't blame her one bit.
Now, based on how she was today, I still don't think that'll happen any time soon, but who knows. This is one of those things you kind of expect in the back of your mind for an elder living alone, but once it happens, it brings home the reality of their mortality.My hope is that she's come though it fine, and heal up soon so she can get back home, but if she had a choice, I honestly think she might rather just not come out of the anesthesia. We all want our loved ones to be around as long as possible, but is it really what's best for them, or is it just what we selfishly think is best for us? Regardless, I hope things go whichever way she wants them to. She's told me many times over the years that she's ready to go whenever it happens, I just want it to be peaceful and in her manner of choosing. I'd hate to see her linger & suffer, being unable to get around or do anything for herself.
I know I won't want that for me either.
9:20 p.m. - 2016-10-03
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