Wednesday, April 30, 2008

We are in a new place today with Mom's health. She had been complaining that her left big toe was hurting...so she decided to go to my podiatrist. Once I got her there and the shoes and socks were off, we all discovered that she had a bruise or dried blood under her toenail. We also noticed that she was involuntarily flexing her toe up and down and did not even know it. She had been banging her toe on the roof of her shoes...hence the bruise or dried blood under the toenail. The doctor said it was not something to be very concerned about unless the area under her toenail became infected, which would mean the removal of the toenail. In the meantime, his solution was for her to wear open toed shoes and slippers so she is not banging her toe on the top of her shoes.

He asked me some questions...about what other things I might have noticed. I told him that Mom had adopted kind of a shuffling gait in the last month or so. He put that together with the involuntary flexing of the big toe and surmised that she may have had a mild stroke or it could be the beginning of Parkinson's disease. I explained all this to Mom after we left because she couldn't hear much of what he was saying. She didn't seem too phased by any of it...but it is hard for me to know exactly how much she takes in and understands.

Afterwards, I treated her to coffee and a cinnamon roll at my favorite French bakery. I wanted her to have a good association with going to the doctor...which is something she usually avoids at all cost. Afterwards, I took her home and did her laundry and made lunch for us, including my brother who stopped by today. After he left and I finished the laundry, I drove up to Sears and bought Mom two new pairs of shoes with an open toe. She liked one of them and and I returned the other pair on my way home.

My big concern right now is that I am starting a full time job next Monday. I have tried to reassure Mom that I will still be around to help her out. Most likely, I will have dinner with her one night a week and spend Sunday afternoon with her. She is getting weaker all the time...and talks a lot about being tired and not lasting too much longer. I never know what to say to this so I just listen.