Mom & Dad Schneider

Comments:

• David, I enjoyed your article on procrastination! It hit home. When I was working, time was short so if something broke, I fixed it then so as not to be bothered later. After I retired and my wife became ill, I started delaying some things because they didn't reach a threshold of importance. She passed away two and a half years ago and I am now trying to get back to dealing with the issues of daily life. It's taken me a while but I am getting there. Each task I do now feels like an accomplishment and I once again like that feeling! Thank you. Bob

  Post: Don’t Procrastinate

  Link to comment from September 24, 2024

• Jonathan, thank you for your comment. You are in my prayers. Bob

  Post: Preparing for the unthinkable.

  Link to comment from August 16, 2024

• I am sorry for you about your parents. Dementia is a devastating illness for the patient and the patients family. My wife passed away due to dementia two and a half years ago. I was able to care for her here at home by myself until the last five months and then we had in home help. We also had the love and support of our three children and their families and an extended family that included her mother. The last part of her illness took place during covid and by having her at home, family and friends could visit at any time. She was a small lady and she never became combative and those were factors that helped to make her care at home possible. In the last six months of her illness, and probably longer, she didn't remember my name and didn't know I was her husband, but she knew I was someone who loved and cared for her. After the caregivers helped her get ready for the day, she would come down the hallway to the kitchen and when she saw me she would shuffle towards me and say, "I love you so much, so much". She passed away at home. I write this to give others another side about the care of a dementia patient. My children, my MIL and I believe that caring for her was a privilege and for me, the most important undertaking of my life. My wife and I had always been best friends but her illness and her care brought us closer. Looking back, I am so thankful she chose to let us care for her.

  Post: Preparing for the unthinkable.

  Link to comment from August 15, 2024

• Thank you to you and your Dad for your service! Bob

  Post: Good Enough for Me

  Link to comment from August 13, 2024

• Before I retired I was a surgeon. About 20 years ago I had a patient who developed severe postoperative complications. He was hospitalized for 6-8 weeks. Near the time of his discharge, I talked with him about his hospitalization and how close he had come to not surviving. He brought up his experience in World War II. " When we were fighting, we always felt that if there was a bullet with our name on it, that was just the way it was going to be." "But we always kept our heads down because we never knew when one might show up addressed 'To Whom It May Concern'." We do our best to prepare, but sometimes things just happen.

  Post: The Risks We Miss

  Link to comment from July 13, 2024

• Dennis, thank you for your article. I would group myself with you and Bill in the cranky category except something happened to change that. My wife and I retired 10 years ago from health care. About three years later she was diagnosed with dementia. A couple of years after that we were walking through the garage and I knocked over something that I hadn't put away. I said angrily, "Oh s___"! When I looked up I realized I had frightened her. It wasn't that she hadn't heard that exclamation before or even used it, but the changes of dementia caused her to be afraid of my loud voice, the anger and the foul word. When I realized that, I apologized and reassured her, but it made me think about what I had done and what I needed to do. The last thing I wanted was for her to be uncomfortable and afraid of me. After that, I took care to think about my responses and amazingly I was able to control my responses. She passed away about two and a half years ago and I have maintained by responses! I have surprised myself! Now when I do something dumb, I talk to myself and stay calm. I think that maybe, through that experience, I realized that none of this stuff is that important and it needs to be kept in perspective.

  Post: Shouting Out

  Link to comment from June 22, 2024

• Your story brought to mind the word resilience! Good job!

  Post: Rolling Right Along

  Link to comment from June 4, 2024

• Jeff, coincidentally , I worked on a cow/calf ranch near Eagle Nest NM for a summer, 1971. The land they rented from the government abutted Philmont land and we rode fence there. It was high country and beautiful.

  Post: A Healthy Sum

  Link to comment from May 18, 2024

• Jeff, Thank you for your article. I am 75. I was also not much of an athlete. And still am not!! I grew up in a farming community and worked on farms until college. My parents sent a pull-up bar to college with me that fit in a doorway. I found that the exercise always made me feel better mentally and physically so I have exercised since then. I got tired of going to a gym so I bought exercise equipment for the basement and dropped the gym membership. While working I would run outside in the very early mornings and then my wife and I would run together on the weekends. We would run together on vacations to explore new places. Our three kids were active in sports and still exercise now that they have their own families. I have at least seven jump ropes!??? My wife passed away about two years ago and exercise is helping me adjust to her loss. I have no idea how much I have spent on exercise equipment and there are some things I find I could have done without. However, I don't regret any of the expense! Activity is so good in so many ways. Keep up the good work!

  Post: A Healthy Sum

  Link to comment from May 17, 2024

• Wonderful article! Great title!

  Post: Way to Go

  Link to comment from May 3, 2024