You know, you can never tell what will happen to you in life. I never thought I'd be sitting outside in the freezing cold at 2 am with a little old lady in my care, desperately hoping she would decide to go back inside again. But, that's exactly what did happen......
Last Wednesday, I did an overnight shift at an assisted living facility. I was told to be sure and not let this certain elderly lady go out the door. In fact, according to her son I was to strong-arm her into NOT going out if she came out of her room during the night. I though....hey, this couldn't be all that bad. If she comes out of her room, fine...... all I have to do is distract her and efficiently help her back to her room. So I prepared myself for a long night ahead with several cups of strong coffee & an assortment of magazines. I also had some very interesting chats with 2 other caregivers there. One of them told me so much about her life, I felt rather uncomfortable! For some reason.....people like to talk to me. I guess it's because I really try to be a good listener. But really....I can do without some of the personal info.......
I was doing swimmingly there until about 1 am. Then, I heard the clacking of the elderly lady's walker coming down the hallway. I took a deep breath, then went to meet her. I asked her if she needed any help. She did NOT need help, she said. She just wanted to catch the bus, and would I please move out of her way?? I tried changing her mind with other suggestions but to no avail. She not only refused to go back, but started to get very angry with me, threatening to scream really loud if I did not move my myself out of her way. It kind of surprised me, because most elderly people will usually do what you suggest, even if they don't want to. You can usually distract them by using some sort of clever phsycology. But I maybe I'm just not used to dealing with this sort of thing like some people. I haven't been a caregiver that long.
To make a long story short, I spent a good deal of time that night outside, in the cold with her. I could not get her to go back in the building for the life of me, and neither could the other caregiver. No amount of coaxing helped, she was so paranoid and thought she was being tricked. I felt very annoyed with her, yet sorry, too. She was so confused and looked so miserable. I couldn't help but wonder what type of life she led as a younger woman.
This may sound bad, but I was hoping the sprinkler might come on in the flower bed behind the bench she was sitting on and shock her into moving! But, of course it didn't. At one point, I couldn't help but laugh inwardly thinking about the situation & wondering what God thought as He saw me sitting there shivering pitifully......
Needless to say, I was so tired from the night, having not even got one wink of sleep, that I could barely function. The worse part was, I had to go do my regular house cleaning job I do every Thursday, sleep or nor sleep. So, that was really awful. While I was there.....the vacuum cleaner quit working and I had to take it apart 2 times to see why the roller brush wasn't moving. But, in the end..... I did get it fixed!! I have to admit I squeezed out a few tears of self pity over all that! It just wasn't my day....
I think I've caught up on my sleep now. It's amazing how lack of sleep can really throw you for a loop, and make you feel like a lifeless glob of goo.
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