Mum has another nasty fall

If yesterday had been bad today was even worse.  John and I were sitting have a leisurely breakfast trying to decide what to do with our day when I had an early video call from Mum.  I had already had her regular early morning text to say she was up and about so a video call could only mean one thing - there was a problem.

I was right - Mum had had a fall.  She wont thank me for posting any photographs so if you are reading this and know her please don't mention them.  She rang to say she had had a bad fall and was clearly visibly shaken.  I tried to calm her down and ascertain how bad she was whilst hastily trying to get dressed and look half decent.

I told her we would set off in about 15 minutes and for her to sit still and calm down and take some sips of water until we arrived.  

Droushia can seem a million miles from Emba when you are in a hurry but fortunately the roads were fairly clear and we arrived pretty quickly.  Mum was in a right old state.  I wasn't sure if she had put her teeth through her lip - it was bleeding.  Under her chin was skinned and bleeding.  Her glasses had been pushed into her nose so she had fledgling black eyes and her nose was black and blue and swollen.  She had also skinned her knee and had blood on her clothes and she was very very shaken.

Mum's cleaners had been due today but she had postponed them so the first thing I did was called Mum's doctors surgery to explain what had happened and as nothing seemed broken it didn't seem appropriate to take her to A&E.  They agreed and told us to go straight away which we did.  I think we waited about 10 minutes before seeing her Doctor.  

Dr Mala explained that Mum's sodium levels have dropped severely again - Mum is booked in for an infusion on Friday.  Although Mum is adamant that she tripped over the rug in the kitchen, which she did, her poor balance may have contributed to the severity of the fall.  John moved the rug whilst we were out because Mum said she didn't need it in the kitchen and it had been in the den previously anyway.

I really like Mum's Doctor.  She treats her with dignity and doesn't make her feel stupid or a nuisance.  She wrote her a prescription for some dry spray for under Mum's chin and knee and some cream for her lips.  I also suggested that Mum use the tin of vaseline with aloe vera which she keeps in the bathroom. This was a good call as the moment Mum started using it she could feel it soothing her sores.

We got her home and changed out of the clothes which had blood on them and got those soaking and then in the wash.  I rearranged the cleaners for next week and then made mum some lunch, a soft sandwich and banana and made sure she had something hot to eat later.  

I made her bed with some old bedding in case she bled all over the place.

In these circumstances a good old cup of tea is always called for and the three of us sat down together to have one.  Mum was gradually calming down and less shaky.  I text my sister and Lilian and a couple of other people who video call Mum so that they didn't get shocked by her appearance.  

Lilian said she would pop round later in the afternoon so once we were absolutely sure that we could leave her we did - telling her to take things easy and not keep getting up and down - this is an impossible ask - she never ever sits still.

I was emotionally drained by the time we got home - incidents like this highlight what we have ahead of us.  Mum still wants to retain her independence and live on her own with Fred.  The problem is that where she lives is a great location but the bungalow is far to big for her and the cost of renting becoming extortionate.  The only trouble is that finding somewhere else would be nigh on impossible but we may have to consider it.  It would be cheaper to live in the home down the road but she is nowhere near that stage yet.  It is an unfathomable conundrum which kept me awake most of the night.