Today my dad is having surgery. I know... that normally doesn't sound like a very good thing, but in this case it is. It is a VERY good thing. My dad has been in pain for two weeks now and will finally be relieved of it this afternoon.
It all started two weeks ago when he went to the emergency room for chest pain. They didn't find anything wrong with him then, but they kept him in the hospital over night to run some tests. Still not finding anything wrong, they sent him home on Wednesday afternoon. Early Friday morning he was back at the ER, this time having abdominal pain so bad he was shaking and sweating. He was turning white, too. My mom and I were both pretty scared when my tough guy dad said his pain was a 10 out of 10 and couldn't find the words to describe the pain other than "it hurts."
The ER sent my dad home, full of pain medication and a referral to see a urologist. He had a kidney stone that was trying to pass. It turns out the stone is too large to pass on its own, so surgery is required. Like I said... this is a GOOD thing that today is surgery day. If you've ever had a kidney stone, you know what I mean. The pain is the worst I've ever felt. I've had kidney stones twice. I would rather go through child birth with no pain medication than to ever have a kidney stone again. Yeah, they are that painful!
Watching my dad be in the amount of pain he has been in for two weeks has been tough. My dad has always been the one to protect me, to take care of me... to be on the other side of that coin has not been fun. I've now been the caregiver to both of my parents in recent months. It has really reminded me of all of our mortality. None of us are getting younger, and I have to face the fact that I am now approaching middle age. This will be the time that I transition from being a young adult, still learning the ropes of growing up, to a full-fledged adult responsible for so much more than I ever wanted to think about. Nope, my children didn't do this for me. Seeing each of my parents lying in a hospital bed sure did, though. Life has definitely become real. I think we have kids to keep us young.
So, today I will be heading over to hang out with my dad before his surgery. I'll sit with my mom in the waiting room so she doesn't have to do it alone. I think I'll bring my laptop so she can play Farmville while she waits. I've found that to be a nice distraction lately. If all goes well, Dad will be back to work on Thursday. It looks like my family is finally on the mend and ready to get back to a normal routine. This has been a long summer break.
"If I could do things over, I´d live my life again.
And never take for granted the love in Daddy´s hands."
And never take for granted the love in Daddy´s hands."
I'm glad that things are going better with your family!
ReplyDeleteI hope your dad recovers quickly, and that you're all able to have easier times ahead. These things keep me up at night too, worrying about parents and their health. Take care, hugs
ReplyDeleteBarbara: Thank you. I'm glad, too!
ReplyDeleteAnne: According to the doctor Dad will be ready to go back to work on Friday. That's pretty quick recovery since we didn't get home from the hospital until 9 PM Tuesday! Thanks for everything.