Post a good thing that happened in your life today

[Allan Bell]

I have positive proof that there is life after death. It came in this afternoons post.

 

A leaflet advertising "Pure Cremation" dropped in and after explaining what they d, (cremate dead people), there is a bit which says their customers rate them 4.9 out of 5.

 

Voices from the furnace?

 

Allan

 

[aphperspective]

21 minutes ago, Allan Bell said:

I have positive proof that there is life after death. It came in this afternoons post.

 

A leaflet advertising "Pure Cremation" dropped in and after explaining what they d, (cremate dead people), there is a bit which says their customers rate them 4.9 out of 5.

 

Voices from the furnace?

 

Allan

 

Looks like a Cash for Ash scam to me.🙂

[CAROL SAUNDERS]

6 minutes ago, aphperspective said:

Looks like a Cash for Ash scam to me.🙂

Yes I hate those type of ads - they seem to appear on certain channels when I'm watching certain programmes - I find them totally inappropriate !

 

Carol

[Allan Bell]

17 hours ago, CAROL SAUNDERS said:

Yes I hate those type of ads - they seem to appear on certain channels when I'm watching certain programmes - I find them totally inappropriate !

 

Carol

 

I am fed up of ads on TV too. No names no pack drill but all those asking for our money should be taken down. Simply put they are begging ads.

 

There was a piece in the news not so long ago about an old lady who, after giving money to a charity was hounded by that charity and others until she had no money left to look after herself.

 

Allan

 

[Betty LaRue]

Hello forum. 🎈🎈🎈I think I’m alive but it’s possible I’m being optimistic again. 
This surgery was the most horrible thing I’ve ever gone through. Pain management has been poorly handled, putting me through hell. One nurse made 3 bad mistakes, but somehow I managed to survive them.

Today, one week post op, after a come-to-Jesus meeting, my pain is finally being better managed.

On a scale of one to ten, my pain has been largely a 9, sometimes 10, with a few short dips to 5. Pretty much lying in bed squirming and panting through it.

The excuse for not managing it better was “You’ve been through a really big surgery. As if I didn’t know!!

It took 31/2 hours.
The scoliosis curve was much worse than the surgeon thought.

My bones are dense and good, probably from the hard physical work I’ve always done.

I was transferred from the Spine hospital after 3 days to a rehab hospital.

I was drugged and befuddled when I was left alone, tried to walk to the bathroom and fell. X-rays showed no damage but definitely upped my pain.

Day 2, just awake, I was sat in the bathroom, abandoned again until I yelled over and over for help. I managed to stand up in my walker, turn and sit in the wheelchair. I wheeled into my room with a 10 pain level and yelled for help again. Nada. I wheeled into the hall, yelled some more. A male nurse came out of a room, saw me crying and writhing, and got me sorted. Then he hunted down my nurse and sorted her. Later, she did a sharp sudden swing to get my legs to the floor from the bed, causing me to scream.

Where I am now. Still having a lot of nerve pain. Muscles were cut, some had lengthened to accommodate the curve, others had shortened. Those muscles have to learn how to accommodate where they are now. The surgeon handled all the nerves to see if they were healthy. Nerves don’t like that. I have fiery hot pain shooting to my feet, both legs. I just have to get through it and it’s not fun. I have 32 staples in my back. It ain’t pretty.

I do feel like I’ll get better each day, but it won’t happen overnight.

My two daughters have been here as much as possible and are taking care of Echo. I thought my oldest was going to slug the bad nurse when she made me scream. I have no idea when I can go home.

Betty

[Bryan]

Sorry to hear of your painful problems Betty, made me feel squirmish just reading your post. Let's hope that things will get better quickly and you have a speedy recovery.

 

Yesterday my wife had a minor op to remove a melanoma from her nose, involving a skin graft from elsewhere on her face. It's not a pretty sight at the moment, she warned me what to expect when I picked her up,  but fortunately not too painful, local anaesthesia seemed to do the trick. She insisted on cooking the evening meal when we got home.

 

Keep us up to date with progress Betty, we'll be rooting for you.

[gvallee]

3 hours ago, Betty LaRue said:

Hello forum. 🎈🎈🎈I think I’m alive but it’s possible I’m being optimistic again. 
This surgery was the most horrible thing I’ve ever gone through. Pain management has been poorly handled, putting me through hell. One nurse made 3 bad mistakes, but somehow I managed to survive them.

Today, one week post op, after a come-to-Jesus meeting, my pain is finally being better managed.

On a scale of one to ten, my pain has been largely a 9, sometimes 10, with a few short dips to 5. Pretty much lying in bed squirming and panting through it.

The excuse for not managing it better was “You’ve been through a really big surgery. As if I didn’t know!!

It took 31/2 hours.
The scoliosis curve was much worse than the surgeon thought.

My bones are dense and good, probably from the hard physical work I’ve always done.

I was transferred from the Spine hospital after 3 days to a rehab hospital.

I was drugged and befuddled when I was left alone, tried to walk to the bathroom and fell. X-rays showed no damage but definitely upped my pain.

Day 2, just awake, I was sat in the bathroom, abandoned again until I yelled over and over for help. I managed to stand up in my walker, turn and sit in the wheelchair. I wheeled into my room with a 10 pain level and yelled for help again. Nada. I wheeled into the hall, yelled some more. A male nurse came out of a room, saw me crying and writhing, and got me sorted. Then he hunted down my nurse and sorted her. Later, she did a sharp sudden swing to get my legs to the floor from the bed, causing me to scream.

Where I am now. Still having a lot of nerve pain. Muscles were cut, some had lengthened to accommodate the curve, others had shortened. Those muscles have to learn how to accommodate where they are now. The surgeon handled all the nerves to see if they were healthy. Nerves don’t like that. I have fiery hot pain shooting to my feet, both legs. I just have to get through it and it’s not fun. I have 32 staples in my back. It ain’t pretty.

I do feel like I’ll get better each day, but it won’t happen overnight.

My two daughters have been here as much as possible and are taking care of Echo. I thought my oldest was going to slug the bad nurse when she made me scream. I have no idea when I can go home.

Betty

 

Good to hear from you Betty, I was thinking about you. Although you had a very tough time, it's also good to see that your post is in the 'Good thing that happened to you' section!!

Now all you need is patience, the pain will eventually fade.

All the best.

Gen

 

[Ed Rooney]

Ohmygod, Betty — what an ordeal You might have been in better shape after stepping on a landmine. 

 

And what a terrible picture of healthcare in America. I've had good luck with nurses but not with my money-loving NYC doctors. 

 

It's good that you're an Okie, one of America's toughest folks. I hope you're headed for a full recovery; poco a poco.

 

Edo

 

 

[Allan Bell]

Sorry to hear that you having to experience the pains but pleased that you are still with us even if it is in a fog for now. Really really sorry that you are not receiving the attention you should from the nursing staff in both hospitals over there.

 

Keep writing your diary on here when you are able we are all interested in how you are progressing.

 

Allan

 

[CAROL SAUNDERS]

It sounds horrendous Betty😞  Hope you will be home soon, think positive as I know you will - you've got this !  Sending positive vibes.... x

 

Carol

[NYCat]

Oh how awful. I was glad to hear the bones are good. That makes a difference. I hope you get better care going forward.

 

Paulette

[Michael Ventura]

Good to hear from you Betty, even if not the most stellar news.   And very sorry about your experiences with the nurses, I do think that many medical facilities are understaffed for many reasons but never an excuse for bad care.  Oddly I just had a chat with my daughter yesterday about this sort of thing.  She called me on her way home from her nightshift, as she often does, and I got a review of how her night went.  I told her to remember to always come to work with her best game-face and attitude as the people she is helping are possibly at their worst moment/time in their life and they feed off the nurse's positivity and attention. I do hope your care improves and your pain wanes in the coming days!

[Cecile Marion]

So sorry to hear of all the horrible pain and aggravation, Betty, but it sounds like you’ve got your fighting spirit intact. Wishing you better days!

[Betty LaRue]

1 hour ago, Michael Ventura said:

Good to hear from you Betty, even if not the most stellar news.   And very sorry about your experiences with the nurses, I do think that many medical facilities are understaffed for many reasons but never an excuse for bad care.  Oddly I just had a chat with my daughter yesterday about this sort of thing.  She called me on her way home from her nightshift, as she often does, and I got a review of how her night went.  I told her to remember to always come to work with her best game-face and attitude as the people she is helping are possibly at their worst moment/time in their life and they feed off the nurse's positivity and attention. I do hope your care improves and your pain wanes in the coming days!

Yes, Michael, attitude is everything. I got a new CNA at 7 a.m. shift change yesterday. Everyone was making her day difficult, even gripey patients. She had never tried to put on a back brace before. I’m not allowed to move without mine on. I told her, “We’ll figure it out together.” And we did! She told me I was a ray of sunshine in her bad day. We can dispense as well as receive.

[Ed Rooney]

4 minutes ago, Betty LaRue said:

Yes, Michael, attitude is everything. I got a new CNA at 7 a.m. shift change yesterday. Everyone was making her day difficult, even gripey patients. She had never tried to put on a back brace before. I’m not allowed to move without mine on. I told her, “We’ll figure it out together.” And we did! She told me I was a ray of sunshine in her bad day. We can dispense as well as receive.

 

You'll get those nurses step-in' in time, Mz B.

[Rebecca Ore]

Sounds terrible.  Hope you get sufficient meds to keep the pain under control so you can keep up with the physical therapy and hope that your physical therapist is a good one.

[Michael Ventura]

2 hours ago, Betty LaRue said:

We can dispense as well as receive.

 

So true!  But it is harder for the one in dire pain or in scary situation with their health.  The one story my daughter relayed to me yesterday, was that of a man who was in very bad shape with Covid, even needed a tracheotomy after being intubated.  The worst case she has seen from Covid, who will most likely make it thru.  She said this guy had such a positive attitude and even a smile, whenever he could muster one, that it made her cry (in a good way).  She called his wife yesterday to say that he was being moved to recovery unit, after more than a month in the critical care and told her how much his positivity probably helped his recovery, during their conversation, my daughter realized that she went high school with one of their sons.  The wife told my daughter that she wants her to come over for dinner after her husband comes home.  It made me cry to hear that.  Being a nurse or doctor is not just a job, it means pouring your heart and soul into what you do for a living...at least it should be or they are not doing it right.

 

So keep up the good fight and try to smile whenever you can!🙂

Edited January 21, 2022 by Michael Ventura

[NYCat]

I do love your daughter, Michael.

 

Paulette

[Michael Ventura]

37 minutes ago, NYCat said:

I do love your daughter, Michael.

 

Paulette

 

Thank you Paulette.  It's funny that I new I wanted to be a photographer since I was about 16 years old and that was about the age she knew she wanted to be a nurse. 

[Betty LaRue]

40 minutes ago, NYCat said:

I do love your daughter, Michael.

 

Paulette

He’s got himself a winner, there. But the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree, so she’s been exposed to compassion her whole life.

[Betty LaRue]

Perry, the physical therapist just put me through the wringer. I walked several turns down the hallway and did the chair exercises. My legs began to shake, so I was used up. I’m in the recliner, now, so better than yesterday when I couldn’t wait to get back in bed. 
I’ve finally gotten a smidge of my appetite back. Many days, the whole day all I ate was 1 piece of bacon and 4-5 bites of oatmeal. I’ve probably lost 10 pounds. My legs look like toothpicks. I need those 10 pounds. Today I had 1 piece of 🥓 and half of an omelet.

The occupational therapist will work with me this afternoon, teaching me to put my own back brace on, dress myself using a reacher and long shoe spoon, and to do the things of daily life.

One of my biggest goals was to be able to get in and out of bed without help. I’ve been doing that for 3 days, now. That means if I get a call of nature in the middle of the night, I can handle it.

 

[Michael Ventura]

7 minutes ago, Betty LaRue said:

Perry, the physical therapist just put me through the wringer. I walked several turns down the hallway and did the chair exercises. My legs began to shake, so I was used up. I’m in the recliner, now, so better than yesterday when I couldn’t wait to get back in bed. 
I’ve finally gotten a smidge of my appetite back. Many days, the whole day all I ate was 1 piece of bacon and 4-5 bites of oatmeal. I’ve probably lost 10 pounds. My legs look like toothpicks. I need those 10 pounds. Today I had 1 piece of 🥓 and half of an omelet.

The occupational therapist will work with me this afternoon, teaching me to put my own back brace on, dress myself using a reacher and long shoe spoon, and to do the things of daily life.

One of my biggest goals was to be able to get in and out of bed without help. I’ve been doing that for 3 days, now. That means if I get a call of nature in the middle of the night, I can handle it.

 

 

You are a tough gal Betty, Those days of holding your own with the farm animals, as a kid, is paying off now! Do they have an idea when you will get to go home?

[Betty LaRue]

10 hours ago, Bryan said:

Sorry to hear of your painful problems Betty, made me feel squirmish just reading your post. Let's hope that things will get better quickly and you have a speedy recovery.

 

Yesterday my wife had a minor op to remove a melanoma from her nose, involving a skin graft from elsewhere on her face. It's not a pretty sight at the moment, she warned me what to expect when I picked her up,  but fortunately not too painful, local anaesthesia seemed to do the trick. She insisted on cooking the evening meal when we got home.

 

Keep us up to date with progress Betty, we'll be rooting for you.

Tell her to keep her chin up. My husband had a deep skin cancer on the side of his nose. They grafted skin from behind his ear. 6 months later, you’d never believe he had something done. Beautiful work.

[Betty LaRue]

3 minutes ago, Michael Ventura said:

 

You are a tough gal Betty, Those days of holding your own with the farm animals, as a kid, is paying off now! Do they have an idea when you will get to go home?

I think it’s a matter of ticking off boxes.

1. Can she dress herself?

2. Can she prepare a meal and feed herself?

3. Can she take a shower, attend to personal hygiene?

4. Can she get in and out of bed by herself?

it’s a struggling YES to the above, but I’m sure I haven’t discovered the other boxes.

[Ed Rooney]

 

Focus on moving deliberately in slow motion. And now . . . Echo awaits.