The last week that Mom spent in the hospital in Winnipeg was much more relaxing than the previous 4 weeks.\u00a0 She had no more tubes in her.\u00a0 She was going outside for short walks and sitting in the atrium for short periods.\u00a0 She was so happy to get out and feel the sun or sit at a table in a chair; simple pleasures.\u00a0 Mom had some learning to do before she could leave for home.\u00a0 She had nurses teaching her how to take care of her colostomy.\u00a0 This was the toughest part for Mom.\u00a0 She really resisted and continued to have issues until it was reversed 5 months later.\u00a0 And there was chemo coming.\u00a0 The doctors had finally decided on what type of cancer she had, which was Breast as well as Peritoneal, which behaves and is treated like Ovarian.\u00a0 The breast tumor was very slow growing so they decided to leave that one alone.\u00a0 They focused on the chemo for the abdominal cancer.\u00a0 Mom was nervous about all of the side effects of the chemo but was really positive in terms of what it could do for her.<\/p>\n
When she left the Winnipeg hospital she stayed in the Steinbach hospital for a few days to be sure that she was all right and could handle going home.\u00a0 The doctors and all of us including Mom agreed that to go straight from Winnipeg to home would be too much of a shock.\u00a0 They also had to set up home care.\u00a0 Mom wasn\u2019t so sure about home care at first.\u00a0 She knew she didn\u2019t have a choice and was thankful that they were available to her for her medical needs.\u00a0 But she was determined that she would handle as much of her meal making and general care on her own.\u00a0 She liked to remind us that she wasn\u2019t that bad off and it was good for her to do as much as she could to keep going every day.\u00a0 And we admired her for it, even if it was frustrating some days.<\/p>\n
Mom went home and was so happy to be there.\u00a0 Auntie A was still coming, staying for up to a week or two and then going home to Minnesota. \u00a0And I was going to Steinbach 3 evenings and 1 day a week for the first few months.\u00a0 It was a strain on our household but I was home more than I had been when she was in the hospital so it was still an improvement.<\/p>\n
My Mom asked me to be at her place when the first home care worker came because my sister was working and she needed some extra support.\u00a0 I have a distinct memory of how nervous Mom was.\u00a0 The nurse had been there to do vitals, check bandages and help out with the colostomy.\u00a0 But this was the first time she would have \u201chelp\u201d doing things that she had done on her own for 60+ years.\u00a0 Giving up even a small piece of your independence is so hard.\u00a0 And at first it was a small piece.\u00a0 They helped her get changed for bed for a while because of her surgery and the tap they had put into her back to get rid of the fluid around her lungs. It was hard for her to lift her arms and bend down.\u00a0 They would also get her meals if she needed or get things for her that she could no longer reach or bend down for.\u00a0 Once a week someone would come and cook meals from Mom\u2019s recipes that could be frozen and they would wash her bedding.\u00a0 They were also company on some lonely nights.<\/p>\n
\u201cTara\u201d came that Thursday night and was so kind.\u00a0 She listened to Mom and explained what to expect.\u00a0 She eased Mom\u2019s fears of her life being taken over by strangers in her own house. \u00a0Knowing that the home care workers were there also eased our minds when we couldn\u2019t be there.\u00a0 We knew that if something went wrong they would be there at certain times and if she didn\u2019t answer her door they would let us know.\u00a0 Mom had known home care workers for many years, including a few that were now helping her out, so she had enormous respect for what they were doing.\u00a0 She appreciated every effort that was made for her.\u00a0 That first night we had no idea that these women would join us so completely in Mom\u2019s journey, share in some extremely intimate moments and become a part of our family.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The last week that Mom spent in the hospital in Winnipeg was much more relaxing than the previous 4 weeks.\u00a0 She had no more tubes in her.\u00a0 She was going outside for short walks and sitting in the atrium for … Continue reading