No More Eggplant, PLEASE!

I've noticed that when my mom eats something that doesn't agree with her Lewy Bodies, we have a crazy day.  A day filled with confusion, moving walls, wild animals, extra cats and a very soft spoken voice that is usually inaudible.

Several posts ago I had written about the Deadly Nightshade Family of plants and how their's something in it that aggravates dementia.  You can read the post here if you are interested:  My Post about Deadly Nightshade plants and dementia episodes

On Sunday, I made Eggplant rolls, gluten free.  I left the skin on the eggplant because when the slices are grilled, it helps to hold the eggplant piece together.  Everyone enjoyed this dish, especially my mother and mother-in-law.

Sunday night, my mom had disturbed sleep.  She was up at 10p walking around in her sleep and again at 4 and 6 am.  She was pointing to the pillows on her bed, telling me that it was the man... damn, the man was back too.

Not on much sleep, I needed to make the best of this day.  I know from experience that I need to be calm and upbeat.  Genuinely upbeat or my mom would see right through my facade. 

How'd I do?

Well, I failed miserably.

I had an appointment with my doctor because I'm not feeling well.  Something isn't right.  It's better to have this sort of thing checked out, so many times I read about the care giver dying before the patient.  Personally, it's not a fate I chose to embrace.

My appointment was for 1:10pm.  The doctor squeezed me in to her schedule. I was anxious for days, waitng to see her.

I made the moms and myself a new dish that I had invented, warmed asparagus salad with pine nuts.  It came out really great.  Delicious. 

My mom, she was a bit out of sorts.  Definitely not a good day for her.

Leaving an hour and 20 minutes to arrive at my appointment, off my mom and I go to my doctor with a 45 minute drive ahead of us.

We're moving right along, heading for the highway... we come to the overpass and I see TRAFFIC.  Dead stopped traffic at 12 in the afternoon!  My mom started saying, "Gee, all these people are going out to lunch at the same time, how crazy!"  I laughed.

I began to sweat because the clock was ticking.  Not being a very good natural geographer, even if I did get my under grad degree in Geography, I turned to the navigation system in my truck.  I instruct it to find us an alternate route. 

The truck had us follow the highway, on back roads, twisting and turning through residential neighborhoods, we were heading up and down streets that I never knew existed.

My mom was enjoying the ride, it was an incredible 70 degree November day in New England... beautiful.

Oh, I am definitely going to be late for my appointment.  I reach in my purse for my cellphone and much to my chagrin, the damn phone battery is dead.  I can't call and let the office know that I was stuck in traffic.  Damn!

20 minutes late we arrive... just as the receptionist is putting me in as a no-show.  I said to her, "I'm here.  I showed.  I was stuck in a really bad traffic jam.  I had to travel a long distance to get here."

The receptionist was not very good at her job. 

I started to cry when she told me to reschedule and I couldn't see the doctor until sometime in December!  December?  Are you kidding me?  I swear to God we have the worst healthcare system in the world when I have to wait so long to see a doctor.

The woman tells me to have a seat and she'd check to see if the doctor could see me today.  I waited 30 minutes.  Occassionally getting called to the receptionist window.  I totally broke down bawling my eyes out in the doctors office when the receptionist said to me, "Oh, I don't know what to do!"  I said, "Neither do I, isn't that what you get paid for, to KNOW what to do?"

Of course my crying was making her nervous.  Some guy was in the waiting room, obviously waiting for his girlfriend or wife.  I didn't care.  The Boo Hoo train had left the station and those tears were coming out.

My poor little demented mother, she sat quietly, looking around at the ceiling and then at me.  Wanting to talk to me but not knowing what to say.  I knew my crying was upsetting her.  She had no idea until yesterday that I have been worried about my own health.  Well, she knows now.

I cried all the way home and more when I got home.

I had no doctors appointment lined up.  The receptionist couldn't handle it.  After making me wait for 30 minutes in the waiting room, I got up and left.  I asked them to call with an appointment when they knew how to schedule one for me.

I did finally calm down after a cup of Nettle tea and my own personal time out.  My mom totally understood this and was fine watching Dr. Oz while she drank a cup of ginger tea.

Calling the doctor's office I was able to reach a nurse who knew what was going on.  I am seeing the doctor on Friday, hopefully if she doesn't have an emergency to rush off to. 

In any event, I'm sure I'll be OK and my mom too... as long as I don't give her any eggplant.