The thing I found most weird about the situation was that nobody could find out what was wrong with my Grandma. Not one doctor. It's frustrating to not know. But my grandma didn't care if they knew or not. To tell you the truth I don't think she cared about trying to cure what was wrong with her. But she also didn't have the energy to do the things she wanted to. She was getting progressively worse. She went from 140 pounds to 100 in just a couple of months. Things looked grim for her. Nobody could figure out what was wrong.I guess I watch too much House, where every medical mystey is solved. I guess I've never been in a situation where there is just no solution. And there was just a point where everyone was giving up. My mom thought at one point my grandma would be dead by august. And I started to believe it when my grandma, one of the strongest people I know was down and out.
But then there was a revilation. Someone had the idea to bring in a oxygen tank for my grandma. Now fortunately my grandma has good insurance and they pay for the oxygen tanks and everything. After learning about all of the horror cases there are, it'd be unimaginable for my grandma to have to cover all the costs out of pocket. Well with this oxygen, my grandma started feeling better,she was up more, eating more, and gaining weight back. Her blood levels which were low went back up and she felt a little like her old self again. More importantly she was acting it. But it's not like the oxygen cured her. She still had her downs And when she did it was hard to deal with. I had never seen her like that. My mom hasn't. I don't think anyone has. I think the only thin that kept her alive was out company. The security that we were there for her.
Things turned around with the oxygen and Now monthly blood transfusions. I think they've stopped looking for what's wrong. And I think everyone is okay with that. She's a fighter. She always said all she wanted was ten more years. And that was eleven years ago.
But then there was a revilation. Someone had the idea to bring in a oxygen tank for my grandma. Now fortunately my grandma has good insurance and they pay for the oxygen tanks and everything. After learning about all of the horror cases there are, it'd be unimaginable for my grandma to have to cover all the costs out of pocket. Well with this oxygen, my grandma started feeling better,she was up more, eating more, and gaining weight back. Her blood levels which were low went back up and she felt a little like her old self again. More importantly she was acting it. But it's not like the oxygen cured her. She still had her downs And when she did it was hard to deal with. I had never seen her like that. My mom hasn't. I don't think anyone has. I think the only thin that kept her alive was out company. The security that we were there for her.
Things turned around with the oxygen and Now monthly blood transfusions. I think they've stopped looking for what's wrong. And I think everyone is okay with that. She's a fighter. She always said all she wanted was ten more years. And that was eleven years ago.
Kevin,
ReplyDeleteGreat writing.
Powerful feeling, and a little scary, that your all's company saved her? Imagine if you hadn't gone.
I grew up in Venice, went to college in Sarasota, and taught for 2 years in Naples.
Kevin,
ReplyDeleteI am commenting on your response based on perspective. You shared an interesting story about your grandmother being ill for some time and how she made a dramatic recovery by the help of oxygen tanks. As a reader this raises my hopes for many things in life. Usually in illness and death related situations we tend to ignore the worst and hope for the best. By witnessing your grandmother go through a phase of being seriously sick, you and your family became worried which triggered them to prepare for the worst. Your mother thought that your grandmother would be dead by August, yet the outcomes proved her wrong. Having this story take place in your life makes me feel that you have a different approach to illness and death in society. Our culture tends to ignore the obvious signs of bad news, by trying to think positive. I feel as if doing so does not help much, but in your case it did. Your grandmother is much healthier when compared to the state she was in some time ago. By reading this I felt like I have changed some of my personal views on death and illness. Your work will cause many to take a new approach on illness and death. Keep it up :)
Amber
Kevin,
ReplyDeleteI am also commenting on your response based on perspective. Your story was very powerful. One thing that I would recommend for you to do next time is to write looking through your grandmother's perspective. I believe that this would further not only your understanding of your reactions but, your understanding of how your grandmother deals with illness. Another thing that I would suggest is to maybe elaborate on the setting of where your grandmother and provide details that would create a picture in my mind or something that I would not expect to read. I really loved the last two sentences of your last paragraph. "She's a fighter. She always said all she wanted was ten more years. And that was eleven years ago. " Although our culture presents death as inevitable and sometimes makes the idea of evading death ludicrous, these two sentences definitely induced some hope in me.
Bianca