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So, here in our little part of the world, my cataract surgery went very well! I mean, I would have preferred a massage, but it wasn’t horrible.

I psyched myself up, did deep breathing throughout, and the people there - docs and nurses - were SOOOO kind to me: I guess because I’m old, and so freaked about the surgery.

Other eye will be on Tuesday. If I can do high math enough to get the eye drops right, I’ll be good!

H is doing ok. In the process of getting approved for a stimulator implanted to help with pain. 🤞🏽🤞🏽🤞🏽

How is everybody doing???

Hey, WR, not nice to say I told ya so, but......

Things not nearly that positive in my world. More very serious health issues in my family. One has been diagnosed with a very aggressive breast cancer. Only good news is that it was found early by a mammogram, and that the surgeon is moving ahead with urgency. Another with a very grave heart issue that we do not know to what extent the damage is as yet. That is complicated by other issues like COPD. Would love some good news about now.....

Oh no. So sorry to hear this. 😞😞😞

I have no problems compared to these severe health issues.

Lots of 🙏🙏🙏 sent to you and yours.

So… I am putting in eyedrops about every 45 seconds to get ready for my cataract surgery tomorrow. Then my grandbabies mama calls me and says, “Well here’s the situation…”. That can’t be good.

Turns out her sister was doing maintenance on someone’s HVAC unit… Her job… And she went into the home (with mask) to check the thermostat or the return filter or whatever. Got a call 2 days later saying someone in the home had tested positive for COVID.

Then the sister was around her mother, then my grand baby’s daughter was around the same mother, and then of course around her daughter, and then around me.the sister was tested yesterday. Results in 3-5 days...they say.

I called the doctor to see if my surgery would go ahead as planned tomorrow. When I explained the “contact tracing“ Involved, she said that I was too far removed for it to be a problem and that I could come ahead and get the surgery done tomorrow. I was surprised to hear that, yet I’m glad to be able to get it over with.

Now to wait and see how the Covid test went for her sister.

Well having four kids home with runny noses and a sneeze here and there is nothing compared to you all.

Prayers for a safe surgery and that the covid tests come back negative.

thebighurt

I'm glad theres no wait for the breast surgery. Praying for you and your family.

Ds had a sore throat. Now a cough. It seems more nasal discharge coughy though. Dd is all nose. Poor kid is sniffling non stop.

Thank you WR and Dragn for the prayers and thinking of me/us.

Pre-op tests this week for the surgery next week, but waiting on the heart doctor for an appointment. Pins and needles all around.

I'm sure your second surgery will be at least as good as the first, WR. I'm surprised it's so soon as mine were three weeks apart, but as long as you get it done.

Dragn, I'm not actually surprised you have sick kids again. Or maybe still...? Always seemed like we had everyone sick most of the while this time of year when mine were in elementary school. Hope you are all feeling well soon.

WR, all the best for your second surgery. I hope you are asking for and accepting whatever help you need for the recovery period. Also, if you have any problems/concerns, feel free to call your doctor.

thebighurt, so sorry to hear of your family's health problems. I'll be thinking of you and them.

Always seemed like we had everyone sick most of the while this time of year when mine were in elementary school.

We had a saying in our house while the kids were in school, "If someone's sick, it must be holiday season." It seemed like there were virtually no holiday seasons where someone wasn't sick with something. Kids.... walking petri dishes.

Kids.... walking petri dishes.

Oh I agree. And it's like a rotating door of snot this time of year

Ds has this cold. I'm sure the cough is due to the nasal drip. He coughs into his arm. A few times sitting with DD watching her play a game on her phone, he has coughed OVER his arm, got her in the face. Not only did she freak out on him but she said his breath smelled like a swamp amd to go brush his teeth lol. He had been eating soft taco wraps for lunch with onions lmao...he now wears a mask all day.

I'll admit that the school has been a bit snarky. I called asking for the forms I have to fill out to be emailed. Was told they already were in a short tone. Also pretty much told not to have thr kids return until they all feel better. When I asked what better means I got even more snark instead of an explanation. Can they have a runny nose with no sneezing ? A sneeze now amd then with no cough??? So I asked if they could put homework together for all my kids for the week which I was told will be done....but I haven't gotten anything emailed ...

I dont mean to be a bitchy parent but they say one thing one week and another thing the next. One week it's that it's ok if they have a runny nose because its winter and cold season. The next week they have to be in perfect health no runny nose.

They cant be In school.

But they wont allow my kids to do home schooling.

So yes I'm frustrated.

I did make home made cough drops. First batch were just a sticky mess but the second batch were perfect. And I tried them. Very soothing.

What do you mean they don’t ALLOW homeschooling?

Oh, I keep forgetting you’re in Canada and maybe you have different laws. Do people not homeschool in Canada?

The year I started homeschooling my kids, I just went in one day and talked to the principal and the next day they were gone out of the schools. I of course had to sign up with a umbrella homeschooling facility with whom to coordinate grades etc.

I can understand the schools being hesitant to want kids who are still showing symptoms of one thing or another, to come back to school. But they certainly don’t have to be snarky about it.

What do you mean they don’t ALLOW homeschooling?

Maybe homeschooling is the wrong word.

They wont allow my kids to switch to the online learning, at home. We were to have the option to switch from in person to online or online to in person back in October but the school boards all pulled that and now its maybe sometime in February. But it's not guaranteed.

So not being allowed IN class due to a runny nose limits their learning because theres no resources I can access like I would if they were learning on the online platform. I asked for homework for this week and have received nothing.

The twins get weekly readers. I put Little Ms reader in her bag so she would get a new one. She did not. I wrote in her agenda twice asking for a new reader since she has the issues reading. Finally the teacher wrote back saying she didnt receive the old reader so no new reader would be sent. IF her concern was for my child's reading problem she wouldn't hesitate to have told me she didnt get the old reader and would just send a new one. (These are photo copied pages of a short book not an actual book from the library)

My patience is worn very thin at this point.

Edited to fix word

[This message edited by DragnHeart at 7:07 AM, November 17th (Tuesday)]

Well, my second cataract surgery is finished.

It was not a fabulous experience, but it’s done.

Everything went well just as last time… Everything ran smoothly...UNTIL...were in the surgery and I could feel him working on my eye. Not good. With the first surgery he put a nerve block in my eye on the side of my temple. I remember because for about 12 hours after the surgery the top of my head on the right side was numb all the way back to the crown.

I’m guessing the block just didn’t work for some reason. I guess he saw me pulling my head down into the operating table to get it away from the instruments. I heard him say, “She can feel the pressure!“. I heard him say that twice. It was very uncomfortable.

Then, the next thing I know when I am coming awake, everything has been done… My IV outt, he heart monitor tabs off of my chest… Everything. And she was waking me up to get into the wheelchair to go out to the car and leave. (Last time I was awake for all of that.

Pretty scary. But it’s over now, and I go in the morning to make sure everything went well. Then back on all the eyedrops for four more weeks.

Never a dull moment.

Oh dear. That made my eyes water.

It's done your right. How does your head feel now? Any numbness? Awful that the nerve block disnt work thia time.

Hugs. You are braver than I am.

Well, on the bright side, (see what I did there with the word “bright“ because we’re talking about cataracts? )...

I can see better! Right now I’m still blurry, my floaters are making me a little crazy, and then there’s all those drops!

But I’m feeling like it will be so worth it in the long run.

[This message edited by WhatsRight at 10:58 AM, November 20th (Friday)]

WR, having "been there", I can definitely say that it is worth it! A wonderful surgeon was recommended to me who not only took out the cataracts but the lens he recommended for a condition in one of my eyes has me seeing almost 20/20 and the condition that caused me to need a special, expensive corrective lens in my glasses is barely noticable now. I have NEVER seen this clearly before.

Luckily, I had almost immediate clear vision after both surgeries. The blurry vision lasted for two or more weeks for one friend who had this done about a year ago. I was concerned that I might, too, but didn't happen.

Whatsright, how is your H doing?

And how are the grandbabies?

Well, the brief answer is that my H is hanging in there. And the grandbabies are AWESOME!

The longer, more accurate response would be that I am afraid. There...I said it.

I fear that my H - in the midst of all of MY attempts to “bring him back” to a more pleasant existence with less pain and more socialization and more function toward something enjoyable / fulfilling - that in reality, he might have already just given up any real expectations or even desires for those kind of possibilities.

I don’t know what to DO about that, so for right now I’m just sort of “sitting in it”. We do have an appointment on Tuesday for the psychological evaluation for the spinal stimulator. It’s a really big expense, and it’s my understanding that the insurance companies want to be able to know, as much as is possible, that it will actually benefit him. So they look at his attitude toward his pain and how much depression/anxiety could figure in. I am a bit concerned that if they reject him for the procedure, it will be devastating.

As far as the grandbabies go… Well, it’s almost like there are no words. I never wanted to be a grandmother. I hoped that my sons would begin their families after I was gone. However weird that may seem, I think it was because I assumed that it would require a great deal of my time and effort when I am worn a bit thin, but also, because I have loved my kids so very much, and taken their struggles to heart to the extent that I did not want to suffer that with their children.

Eke… When I see that in writing, it seems beyond selfish.

But now that I have two grandbabies, I have to say that there aren’t any words. For the most part, when I am with my granddaughter, the world seems to stop. If she is napping in my arms, I just sometimes stare at her and talk to her even though she’s asleep. Time seems to stand still. I haven’t yet had those pleasures with my grandson. Even though they do not live far away, I don’t see him very often. And I’m just about the only white person in his world I guess. Every time he sees me he begins to cry. It’s really hard, but I have to think about his perspective. If – no, when – I get to spend more time with him, I pray we will find that connection and I will have some precious moments with him like I do with my granddaughter.

As far as their future disappointments / hurts, I have to surrender that to their parents, and to God.

So… much more of a long answer than you were asking for, and perhaps even wanting! 😊. I’m just in a mood this morning. But thanks for asking.

How is your family...?

How is everyone’s family?

Whatsright, babies have a way of making the world right, no matter the circumstances. Just the SMELL of a baby is comforting. (well, except when they need a diaper change.) I don't have babies in my life but my sister has two granddaughters that she shares with me. They make troubles disappear. I don't get to see them often now but she keeps me updated with photos.

I hope the insurance approves the device for your H. It's amazing how much insurance companies rule our life. Some times I feel they only exist to collect premiums.

I posted an update in the Covid19 thread just now. My daughter and I are doing okay. Trying to stay safe. I'm still working from home, as is she. We have a new litter of barn kittens (Mama is FAST, been trying to catch her to get her fixed for months!) ... and baby kittens are fun. My daughter has a spoiled doggy and I have two spoiled doggies so they are a diversion from the pandemic as well.

We worked yesterday to make two complete Thanksgiving food boxes for two needy families in our town and dropped them off at the church. Our little town, even with the deniers -- really tries to help others and the churches and civic groups are doing drive through free lunches and dinners.

When this pandemic is over, I am going to go out to eat and really enjoy that. That is something I really miss.

I lost my favorite cousin at this time last year. He lived in St. Louis. He donated his body to science and I got a notice there would be a ceremony at the memorial site for those who donated their bodies during the last year -- as their ashes have found a final resting place. I SO wanted to go to that for closure but didn't feel it safe to travel. My sister and I will go later. He was like a brother to us and we miss him so much. He died suddenly of a heart attack. I was the last person to talk to him the Saturday night after Thanksgiving and he passed the next day. I talked to him daily.

The virus has taken so much of our lives ...

Hang in there and good luck to you and your H this week.

We found out yesterday that someone in my husband's classroom tested positive. He was advised to not take a covid test until 5 days after the potential exposure and to quarantine for 14 days... Potential exposure was on Thursday, so test will be tomorrow. Husband has been staying further away and wearing his mask. Since my older kids were here last week, they are still here until H tests negative or the quarantine is over.

Oh no!

Tons of positive mojo and prayers for negative tests all around.

Nice to have the kids staying longer!