Welcome to my regular Friday song/tune day, ladies and gentlemen, where I pick a piece of music that reflects my mood or the times, to share with you.

I admire those people for whom caring for the sick and broken comes instinctively. I can keep up the Florence Nightingale charade for about a week (slight exaggeration) but after that I need to have a Bex and a lie down. I find it especially stressful when the source of the problem is not immediately obvious or the patient cannot communicate how they are feeling. When my dog was indeterminately ill a couple of years ago, the vet suggested I could probably do with a Valium. I suspect his comment was his way of avoiding my endless questions and speculative scenarios. Why start at the start when you can jump to conclusions? I can be a real pain in the arse.

More recently, my True Love has been falling apart with one problem after another. Poor man. His ongoing Achilles tendon issue means he has been spending a lot of time on his butt. Sitting all day for months on end is not good for you. It hurts. So now he is a mass of pain in the arse. The pain is so bad that he even loses the power of speech at times. Sometimes when I ask him whether I can get him anything else, he can only manage a moan. There is not enough Bex in my medicine cabinet for me to cope with that. I think that deserves a visit to the doctor, don’t you?

Seriously though, caring for those with long term illness or disability is incredibly challenging. If you are in that situation, here is a song for you. Vocals by Jimmy Barnes and John Farnham. John Diesel on guitar. Enjoy.

Stay safe, stay sane and if you feeling overwhelmed, it is okay to have a cup of tea and a lie down.

Kind Regards.
Tracy.

30 thoughts on “In Good Times And Bad”

  1. Tracy, I feel your pain, I really do. I may be the worst nurse in the world, with limited reserves of patience and a horror of blood, gore and bodily fluids in the wrong place at the wrong time. May your challenges ease before too long.

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  2. I am like Margaret–one helluva bad nurse. And men getting sick is a whole ‘nother ball game. I totally lose patience–what little I have, anyway. But, I hope your TL feels better soon. For both your sakes.

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  3. What can I say … I’m joining the chorus. I’m grateful my boys are pretty stoic (a little too stoic in the Big T’s case), but my father was an absolute nightmare when he was ill, and one of my brothers has inherited it. I really felt for my mother, and for my sister in law!

    I hope your TL’s achilles heals soon.

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  4. I had a torn Achilles tendon. It took forever to heal and the injury coincided with my trip to Switzerland and Iceland. It’s hard to put a good face on it. I hope he feels better soon and yeah, staying off your feet is a pain all its own. ❤

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      1. It was a drag, but you know. It was because of an antibiotic I was given — Cipro — interacted with St. John’s wort which I take to keep my brain on a somewhat even keel. It’s a known interaction side effect, and my doc shouldn’t have prescribed it, but OH WELL.

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  7. Jacque McShee’s Pentangle “She moves through the Fair” live 2007 YouTube. You might enjoy this version. It has been covered many times. Jimmy Barnes had a great cover of the song, “When Something is wrong with my Baby…” hope your TL is feeling better soon.

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  8. I am so sorry to hear about your TL, Tracy. I have cared for my ailing father and my MIL suffering from Alzheimer’s. So I hear you.
    My husband is not stoic at all. He grumbles and complains and rushes to the doctor at the slightest pretext! Humour and tea are always great antidotes. And music, of course!
    A stand for the computer is a good idea, we too are thinking of getting one.
    Take care.

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  9. Tracy, I hear you. I’ve been on both sides – having had to care and be cared for and both is hell. My physical pains might have been horrible but the psychological load of taking care was somehow even worse. Giving your best and wanting to help but not being able to because it’s not in your power sucks out all your energy. And the endless worrying doesn’t help either.
    Still, having had those Achilles tendons issues myself I think I know what your TL is going through as well – and it isn’t fun. You say he’s moaning? Well, I was screaming. And my poor mum had to deal with that. For months all I could do was literally crawl, and I even had to use a bucket for nature’s call sometimes because I couldn’t face the way to the loo. I never want that to happen again, it was extremely humiliating.
    But enough of me – please be assured that it will get better one day. It just needs (admittedly, quite a lot of) time. And then the two of you will be able to go for a lovely walk again, and what’s now an awful situation will be but a hazy memory then. Take care!

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      1. Thanks, Tracy. Honestly most days I don’t even think about it anymore, it’s just when something reminds that the memories get crystalclear. 😉 So don’t worry.

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