Thursday, April 07, 2005
JANUARY AND FEBRUARY....1990
The new year came in rather quiet. I turned more attention to mom who had been complaining of her right knee hurting. She was taken to the doctor who told her the cartilage was gone and he didn’t want her on blood thinner anymore. He changed her pain medicine and it seemed to be beneficial. Becky had been having terrible pain with her mouth. She made trips to the dentist who said it was a sinus problem, not a dental problem. When she made an appointment with the doctor, he said it was dental trouble….definitely not sinus.
Becky always had teeth problems. She often had infections but this was worse than any thing she’d had before. She exhausted her finances trying to find a solution and was at her wits end when we were talking to the choir director’s wife at church one evening. Her husband had many of the same symptoms once and an allergist in Springfield found and corrected his problem. We jumped at the chance to get his name and phone number and made an appointment. We were determined to help her get over the infection because she had been sick with it all fall.
When her appointment time arrived, Bear took her for the examination. It didn’t take long for him to tell that she had a king-size infection going in her mouth. It was so bad he wanted to make sure it wasn’t sinus cancer before he did anything. He made an urgent call to a clinic for a CAT-scan and waited for the results to come back. Breathing a sigh of relief he said it was not cancer and she would therefore need to see a reputable dentist to begin treatment. Since we lived out of town Bear asked for a recommendation and was given the name of his personal dentist, whom he respected, greatly.
It was late in the afternoon by now but the allergist called Doctor Beasley, gave him a run-down on the situation and Doctor Beasley said to send her over, he’d try to help her. It was quitting time but he and his assistant were still there and would wait. When he saw Becky’s mouth he backed off and could not believe the damage in her mouth. His compassion kicked in and he did the best he could to get some instant help…..then sent her home with antibiotics and we were on a long list of visits to his office. Since I was working, Bear took her up each week, sometimes twice a week for treatment. In the end, she had bridges, crowns, cavities filled and all manner of infection gone. It took all spring but finally she owned a healthy mouth and we were glad to get the help for her. I’ve never seen anyone have the mess in their mouth that Becky did…….because of the caring and dedicated work Doc Beasley did in her mouth, we all three became his patients.
Mom had some bad reactions to her medication and I was beginning to see more signs of her failing health. It seemed each week she was becoming more frail and more lost in her memories. Some days she scarcely knew who I was and would become distracted with my visit and go wheeling off down the hall to sit at the nurses station. I cannot find words to explain the effect it had on me. She would have periods when she would be cognizant and happy to see me but those times were becoming less frequent.
I was beginning to feel the pressure of making choices for my mother. I was less confident about them. I felt there was a lack of interest in her health by the health-care people and too many times the caretakers in the nursing home were negligent. I tried to tell myself I was becoming too paranoid. I expected them to take care of her as I would and it wasn’t possible. I experienced all of the guilt others feel when they can no longer take care of their family member. It’s sad and there are no good answers.
Becky had applied for a Driver’s Examiner’s position and we hoped she would be selected. Jennifer was in her senior year at school and in the fall she would be going to college……Becky needed a steady job that offered tenure. Being a single mom, she needed all the help she could get. We made it a matter of prayer and nothing to do but wait for the results. March would soon be here and there were many changes on the horizon for our family……….
Until tomorrow,
Essentially Esther
Becky always had teeth problems. She often had infections but this was worse than any thing she’d had before. She exhausted her finances trying to find a solution and was at her wits end when we were talking to the choir director’s wife at church one evening. Her husband had many of the same symptoms once and an allergist in Springfield found and corrected his problem. We jumped at the chance to get his name and phone number and made an appointment. We were determined to help her get over the infection because she had been sick with it all fall.
When her appointment time arrived, Bear took her for the examination. It didn’t take long for him to tell that she had a king-size infection going in her mouth. It was so bad he wanted to make sure it wasn’t sinus cancer before he did anything. He made an urgent call to a clinic for a CAT-scan and waited for the results to come back. Breathing a sigh of relief he said it was not cancer and she would therefore need to see a reputable dentist to begin treatment. Since we lived out of town Bear asked for a recommendation and was given the name of his personal dentist, whom he respected, greatly.
It was late in the afternoon by now but the allergist called Doctor Beasley, gave him a run-down on the situation and Doctor Beasley said to send her over, he’d try to help her. It was quitting time but he and his assistant were still there and would wait. When he saw Becky’s mouth he backed off and could not believe the damage in her mouth. His compassion kicked in and he did the best he could to get some instant help…..then sent her home with antibiotics and we were on a long list of visits to his office. Since I was working, Bear took her up each week, sometimes twice a week for treatment. In the end, she had bridges, crowns, cavities filled and all manner of infection gone. It took all spring but finally she owned a healthy mouth and we were glad to get the help for her. I’ve never seen anyone have the mess in their mouth that Becky did…….because of the caring and dedicated work Doc Beasley did in her mouth, we all three became his patients.
Mom had some bad reactions to her medication and I was beginning to see more signs of her failing health. It seemed each week she was becoming more frail and more lost in her memories. Some days she scarcely knew who I was and would become distracted with my visit and go wheeling off down the hall to sit at the nurses station. I cannot find words to explain the effect it had on me. She would have periods when she would be cognizant and happy to see me but those times were becoming less frequent.
I was beginning to feel the pressure of making choices for my mother. I was less confident about them. I felt there was a lack of interest in her health by the health-care people and too many times the caretakers in the nursing home were negligent. I tried to tell myself I was becoming too paranoid. I expected them to take care of her as I would and it wasn’t possible. I experienced all of the guilt others feel when they can no longer take care of their family member. It’s sad and there are no good answers.
Becky had applied for a Driver’s Examiner’s position and we hoped she would be selected. Jennifer was in her senior year at school and in the fall she would be going to college……Becky needed a steady job that offered tenure. Being a single mom, she needed all the help she could get. We made it a matter of prayer and nothing to do but wait for the results. March would soon be here and there were many changes on the horizon for our family……….
Until tomorrow,
Essentially Esther
