So, mom and I had such a rough night Saturday that I ended up not going to work on Sunday. Later that day, I called the HR manager to explain my situation and tell her that I would be unable to work my shifts for the week. I started off by saying "I know that the situation I am currently in is going to sound unbelievable - but I assure you that I am not creative enough to make this stuff up...." Luckily, my parents both have the same Ortho Dr and - after all the years they've gone to him - he's almost like a family friend. So, I'm hoping to get a note from him explaining why I needed the time off from work to care for my parents.
Sunday was the last day that my Uncle was visiting from Arizona. Since my dad had breakfast with him while I stayed home with my mom, my dad stayed home that night and allowed me to go visit with my grandmother, aunts and uncles for a little while. It was a lovely visit and they've all assured me that ChuChi has their utmost support and that they all plan to donate further down the line when I need it more.
Sunday night was another rough one - I wasn't able to get my mom comfortable till about 3 am, and then I couldn't get to sleep for at least another hour. I woke up at 10 am, frantically trying to get everything ready to take my dad to the hospital when he informed me that they had postponed his arrival for another hour. So, I finished packing up what I needed and went back to sleep for another fifteen minutes.
At the hospital, I dropped my parents off and parked far off in the parking lot before walking the distance to get inside. The registration desk was fantastic - seeing my mom with the boot and the walker, they loaned us a wheelchair for the day, so I got a workout pushing her around the long hallways from one place to another. And, of course, several things were locked up in the car so I did numerous quick-trips back out to retrieve one thing or put another thing back. Mom and I stayed with my dad in pre-op for four hours - none of us having eaten as a show of solidarity for my dad. However, there came a point when hospital staff started coming in more frequently to do certain things and - between him not wanting his daughter to see his manly-bits and my mom in a cumbersome wheelchair, it just seemed best for her and I to get out of the way.
I eventually got mom and I set up in a couple of recliners in the waiting room and we snacked on slim fast shakes and grapes and apples and cheese sticks and plantain chips that I had packed for the day. Dad was finally taken into surgery about 5:00 or so. He was moved to recovery around 8:30, but mom and I still had to wait another hour and fifteen minutes before we finally got to see him again.
When we finally got to see him again, he was being a goofball, pretending to be more severely drugged than he actually was and talking about kissing pretty scrub nurses on their chin. He was a riot, but the pain kicked in pretty soon after. We got settled into a room around 10:30 and mom and I stayed for another couple of hours to help get him situated.
My beloved, gimpy parents at the end of a VERY long day in the hospital.
Identities hidden to protect the innocent...bwa-ha-ha
After leaving the hospital, mom and I made a midnight Denny's run - since neither of us had eaten a decent meal all day - and made it home by 1:30. Then it was time to catch up on the chores that had been neglected for the day and trying to help my mom recover from having had her foot down for most of the day (the swelling was horrendous).
I admit to sleeping in late this morning, figuring that mom and I would both go up some time in the afternoon, but I felt terrible when my dad started calling to ask for things from home. By then, I had woken up, but mom was still terribly sleepy and in pretty bad pain. I was waiting for her to get to a point where she would feel well enough to go visit with me (as it is wholey unlike my mom to stay home when my dad and I are in the hospital), but it eventually became clear that she simply was not going to be able to make it. So, I made the terrifying decision to leave her home alone while I went to see my dad and take him the things he needed - promising I'd be back soon.
But, once I was with my dad, I felt just as terrible for leaving him alone. I'm a Daddy's Girl and I can't begin to explain how heart wrenching it is to see your big, strong, heroic Daddy going through that kind of pain. I was there while he was undergoing physical therapy and his face turned purple in agony - his body shivering terribly through the pain while the therapist worked on bending his knee and getting him to walk. I hope he didn't see the tears in my eyes - both as he lied there hurting and as I prepared to leave and go back home. Under any other circumstance, I have always spent the entire day with my parents when they are in the hospital...leaving just felt so unfair. But, once I got back in the car and called home to check on my mom, I was reminded why it was so important for me to be home with her.
She wasn't answering the phone.
Immediately, my imagination painted a picture of her sprawled out on the floor only moments after I left, waiting for me to find her whenever I returned home. Or, maybe she was choking on a pill? Or, maybe in her sleepiness she didn't realize she'd already taken one and overdosed? My heart was racing but the weather was terrible and I knew I couldn't drive like a maniac. Thankfully, she called me back and apologized for not having heard the phone ring in her sleep.
I don't know what's worse - seeing both of my parents hurting and injured and being helpless to make it any better, or being completely unable to be in both places where I am needed at the same time. I knew this situation would be difficult for them and demanding on me, but I neglected to foresee how emotionally troubling it would be.
Dietary wise, this is EXACTLY the kind of situation that would quickly add five pounds but, I've been keeping to my healthy choices as best as possible. Although I have eaten out three times in two days, I chose protein at Denny's last night, I had a salad from McDonald's for lunch today and had some Wendy's nuggest for dinner - so I'm feeling good with the choices I've made. I'm under calories, I've fulfilled my protein needs, I'm under carbs and although my fat intake was a little higher than I would like, Alli is helping me to keep it all balanced. I managed to fit in a walk at the hospital yesterday while I was waiting around - plus a few minutes tooling around in my mom's wheelchair (I don't care what ANYONE says - wheeling my 341 lb body in a wheelchair is a freaking WORKOUT!) And, since the weather and my mom's condition have knocked out walking today, I think I'm going to fit in some resistance exercises I found on the internet before bed tonight.
Monday was weigh-in, so I hopped on the scale before racing off to the hospital for my Dad's surgery. I was disappointed to see that I had only lost 3.3 lbs, but then I came to realize that a) I still lost weight and b) I did it without even putting *that* much effort into it, so I am really in no position to complain. Besides, at my current weight of 341 lbs, I've lost a total of 25.4 lbs in one month and I've earned over $250 for six different charities. THAT'S FANTASTIC! When you look at it that way, there's no way I can begin to be unhappy! So I'm pumped now...BRING IT ON!
Hell, it's better than 366.4! Whoot-Whoot!
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