She has had 6 back surgeries, cancer, and now something called arachnoiditis which gives you constant pain. I have done all the safety things, grab handles in bath, steps to get into bed, and I bought her a wonderful recliner which is where she spends all of her time, eating sleeping. At this point I have been able to handle everything cooking, laundry, bathing, sorting out pills. It would be great to talk to others in similar situations.
How do you manage stress?
I've heard that 40& of caregivers die before the loved one due to stress.
Hope you and your wife have a good day. Nothing wrong with it doing your own cleaning, I'm sure you have plenty to do.
OK, so the one thing I did let go was cleaning of my home, every two weeks two ladies come in and clean the first floor of my home, they don't speak English so all they say is Hi, but they do a nice job.
Question, I went to the profile and all it asked for is name, phone, email, zip is that all I am suppose to do and if not how do I get to wherever I should go?
One thing that really helps me out with meals is signing her up for meal deliveries. We use OSF Peace Meals, it's like meals on wheels. Not only is it a nutritious meal, it's also another person for her to interact with besides me.
We also have a housekeeper come in every other week to 'deep clean'. That makes my wife happy. Plus, that's another person to interact with.
So I assume she's a fall risk?
One thing I did was run a power cord into the bathroom sink base and put a phone land line wireless handset unit in there.
She's used that emergency phone twice already after falling.
What do you do when she does fall?
You need a set routine to work through when she does fall.
Mine goes like this:
Verify she's conscience, lucid and check for signs of a stroke.
Take your time, don't rush and make things worse.
Is there a new pain or bleeding?
Can all toes and fingers wiggle?
Slowly get her laying on her back.
When she's ready, help her sit up.
After she's sat up a few minutes and stable,
stand behind her, bend at the knees and
slip my arms under her arm pits and
when she's ready, lift her to standing.
Hold onto her while she stabilizes herself and
lead her to a chair.
Give her a couple of Tylenols before she gets stiff.
How long can she be left by herself?
Remember, you count for something in this equation too.
You've got to take care of your own mind, body & soul too.
We can help with all that.
What's your biggest concerns?
This is a forum for caregivers all over the world though the majority are from here in the US.
It sounds like you're doing a great job with your wife, and are figuring things out as you go along. That's what we've all had to do.
I do hope though that you're also taking good care of yourself and doing things that you enjoy as that is very important when caring for a loved one, because you matter too in this equation.
I wish you well as you continue on this journey with your wife. She is very fortunate to have you.