Just a quick post to put in an appearance here on the blog and update you on stuff around here.
We’ve all heard the variety of quotes about how in life we juggle lots of balls and sometimes we have to drop one or two in order to self care and better cope. Well that’s been me. Too many balls were being juggled for me to cope with so I’ve had to drop some – the blog, my art, my housework!! I’ve dropped a few rubber balls and put my attention to the glass ones. Here’s a quote that explains.
When juggling as much as you are, remember that some balls are glass and some are rubber. You can’t drop the glass balls. ~ Nora Roberts
On Saturday 15 April I got out of bed, had a leisurely cup of coffee, and was on my way to my yoga mat to do my morning yoga and pilates when I checked my phone and there was a text message from Mum’s personal mobile alarm advising she’d had a fall. I called her personal alarm and spoke to her and this time it wasn’t an accidental bump of the button (that’s happened twice), it was real. She was on her bedroom floor and couldn’t get up. She said she didn’t think she was hurt. So then all the messages between siblings and deciding on my youngest sister going over first as she was closest (though she was still 15 minutes away from the end of a hike in bushland). She got there and couldn’t get Mum up. We said to call an ambulance and then I picked up another sister who lives down my way and we went over. I live around 45 minutes from Mum’s house. On arrival at Mum’s, no ambulance there yet. Mum still on floor. 2.5 hours from when they were first called, still no ambulance, so my sister phoned again and the 000 ambulance person talked us through how the three of us could get Mum up. We managed to do it thankfully and we cancelled the ambulance. We were low priority and it would have been many more hours before one came and then they would’ve wanted to take Mum to emergency at a hospital to be x-rayed and checked over. They would’ve been ‘ramped’ and Mum would’ve been waiting there for many more hours. We decided we would observe her and if any concerns we would contact her doctor on Monday. Monday came around and Mum had a very sore coccyx and couldn’t sit comfortably so the doctor was contacted, I took her for an x-ray, and thankfully no new fracture or break. It’s a soft tissue injury that will take some time to heal and improve.
By the way, Mum’s personal alarm is from LiveLife and is worth every cent. Along with a button Mum can press to alert us if she needs help, it has fall detection so will alert us if she falls regardless of whether she pushes the button or not. It has a sim card in it so we can call it if she’s not answering her phone. Thankfully Mum is really good at wearing her ‘necklace’ (as we call it).
I stayed longer at Mum’s last week than usual. There’s also been a lot of family events and medical appointments of my own. It’s been a lot. I’ve had to self protect and drop some rubber balls. It’s not likely that I’ll get back to my regular routine for a while actually, because I have another stint over at Mum’s next week and I have a trip to NZ to get ready for and I’m running out of time to do that. There’s also some more family events and more medical appointments coming up. So rubber balls will be dropped where needed so that I can get things done that need to be done.
Love my blog. Love my art. But self care needs to take priority at the moment because life is really quite demanding right now. Only 2 weeks and a couple of days till we board an aeroplane for the first time since 2019!
Hope you’re all well. I’ll be back here again as soon as I can.
Ciao for now,
Linking up with Denyse Whelan’s ‘Wednesday’s Words and Pics‘
22 Comments
Take care Min… that holiday is so close you can almost see it.
Thanks Jo – yes it’s getting closer and closer very quickly!!
Hi Min you are juggling a lot of balls but hang on the holiday will soon be here. Taking care of ourselves especially when we are caring for others is vital so stepping away from the blog for a time means one thing less you have to fit in. Take care xx #WWandP
Thanks Sue – yes I’ve been fine for ages but I think I’m starting to unravel somewhat now so the holiday is very much needed. Hopefully then I’ll be feeling more rock solid and ready to go again! xo
Hope everything works out well for you and you have a great trip. I remember when my MIL was in care and we’d often get calls about her being sick or having fallen. So stressful. I fell down some stairs a while ago; the ambulance never came! Too bad if I’d had a heart attack!!
Thanks Sherry – yes there’s lots of worry and stress involved and that can take a toll. A few weeks away from it will work wonders. The situation with ambulances is terrible!! I understand though that they have to prioritise and someone who was in a life threatening situation would’ve been prioritised ahead of us. If Mum was seriously injured and/or was alone then she would’ve been bumped up higher in priority – I HOPE! Glad you didn’t have a heart attack but awful you fell down some stairs and the ambulance never came!!
Hoping my comment went thru…
It did. My blog is having issues at refreshing when new stuff is added. It’s because pages are cached for quicker download. It eventually refreshes but can take a while! Sometimes I do a manual clearing of cache so the pages refresh. It’s all a pain in the butt!
Hi Min – sorry to hear about your Mum – but so glad you managed to deal with it all and it wasn’t too serious (although I imagine it was hugely stressful for everyone at the time). You’re so right about knowing which things to lay aside for a time while you focus your energy on the more important stuff. Blogging, art etc will always be there for you when you come back to it. Glad you have the NZ trip to look forward to as a light at the end of the current tunnel. x
Hi Leanne, I’m glad it wasn’t more serious too! One fall means we’re more nervous now for another – sigh! Yes I’m feeling a bit overloaded and panicked about being ready for our trip! So much to think about and get organised and not much time left. We’ll get there though I suppose! Hopefully the trip will make a huge difference to how I’ve been feeling recently. xo
I’m so glad your mum is OK but what a worry it would have been for you. Juggling is something we become good at with elderly parents and children (and grandchildren) but it’s essential we take care of ourselves first. I’m glad you can see this and will take steps to help you cope with all you have going on. Your trip to New Zealand will be here before you know it and it’s exciting to have that anticipation. Take care xx
Hi Debbie, it sure got the adrenaline going – the urgency to get to her and not knowing what we’d find. Now hoping it doesn’t happen again, etc etc. I think the NZ trip is very timely as I very much need a break from stress and worry and responsibilities just for a little while so I can have a bit of fun and get back to feeling a bit more myself. xo
My mum’s not at that stage yet but I like the idea of the personal alarm. And how dire that an ambulance can take so long. I guess they have to prioritise but I’m glad they were able to tell you want to do to get her up, but how distressful for you all.
I know having them grow older is worse than the alternative (losing them early) but it’s hard to watch nonetheless.
And yes Min, definitely look after yourself! x
It was certainly adrenaline inducing Deb! Not knowing what we’d find etc. We needed instruction on how to get her up safely as we were concerned about doing the wrong thing and causing more harm. Plus Mum has no strength so it’s her full body weight we had to lift. The personal alarms are a MUST when they get older, are living alone, and a ‘fall risk’. Without it who knows how long she’d have been lying there before we found out? xo
How stressful. I do love those alarms – I have a few friends with them – one a 98year old still at home and my mum both have them.I’m glad your mum was ok but what a stress. And I’ve noticed a lot of AMbo protests that have continued with the change of government. Clearly the funding hasn’t come through. A lack of investment in that area for decades is what we’re all paying for now- and not with money, with potentially our lives. I love that quote btw
Those alarms are fantastic. They provide some peace of mind, particularly when they are good at wearing them and thankfully Mum is. The ambo situation is dreadful!! So many lives at risk because of it. Gone are the days you could call one and they’d be there within 30 minutes and off you’d go to hospital. It worries me enormously. I do hope they get the problem sorted and soon!
Oh gosh, what a worry that time was for you all. I am glad Mum has this alarm system. My Dad has one, but in his case, it also takes him through to someone who can decided to call 000. He used to just keep it near his bed, but the last few years, its around his neck all day. It is something we value even though he hates the need to use it. “I don’t want to go back to hospital”…
I liked how you did get to prioritise what was most important for you to manage too Min.
And I hope you can enjoy your preparation for your much anticipated trip to NZ.
Great to see your post in the link up for Wednesday’s Words and Pics. Thank you! Hope to see you next week too. Denyse.
It was a bit of a shock start to the day Denyse and very worrying. We were lucky that it wasn’t worse so I’m grateful for that! We could choose who the alarm calls – think it’s most of us siblings and we can then decide whether 000 needs to be called. Fat lotta good calling them is though!! Mum hated wearing the alarm at first – she doesn’t like things around her neck. She could wear it as a watch but that was big and annoying so the wearing it around the neck was preferable. She wears it whenever she is alone now and doesn’t complain because she knows how awful it would be to fall and have no one aware of it. I am looking forward to NZ – less than 2 weeks now. I feel a bit panicked though as I have very little time left to get organised. It’ll be all last minute at this rate. xo
I cannot imagine the ambulance taking more than 2 hours. That is unheard of here. Thankful the dispatcher or person who answered the call was able to help you get your mom up. These falls are terrifying for our loved ones and us. My mom was counting her falls but lost track when she got over 70!! Can you imagine? The woman was made of rubber. But bless her heart, it was a fall that caused her death in August.
Glad you have a fall pendant or bracelet in place. Hope that gives you some peace of mind. Keep looking forward to your trip. That will help you get through these long, tough days leading up to it.
Hi Leslie, it used to be unheard of here too – to wait that long for an ambulance. Everything has gone haywire. Hospitals understaffed. Ambulances ‘ramped’ for hours on end waiting for emergency staff to be available for their patient. It’s like a bad movie. I hope they can get it sorted out because so many lives will be lost if this doesn’t improve. It’s dreadful! I agree that falls are a big deal and a big worry in your older years. Remember as kids we’d fall, scrape our knee, have a cry and bounce back up again. No big deal. It’s certainly a big deal now. Your mother must must’ve been part cat with multiple lives to have had so many falls and bounced back. So sad a fall was the cause of her death. I’m so sorry. August wasn’t long ago. Yes that personal alarm does help give peace of mind for us. Goodness knows how I’ll ever get myself organised for my trip. It’s been one thing after another. Just hope I manage to pack appropriately and get on the plane in one piece. Then I might finally relax and get a bit excited! xo
Hello Min – I missed the new post. I hope your mum is fully recovered from the fall and that you have been able to have some time to look after yourself. Not long until your NZ trip now – I look forward to reading all about it. Take care x
Hi Elizabeth, Thank you! Mum’s doing ok. We’re so thankful it wasn’t worse! Don’t know how I’ll ever get myself organised for my trip but I suppose I will. I’ll be excited and start to relax once I’m on the plane I think! xo