Thursday, December 6, 2007

Flu Shot

The community nurse came to our home to give hubby and myself our flu shot. This is the first year we have not been able to go to the clinic.



Last year, we drove in the car, but hubby was not able to get out of the car to walk into the clinic. It was cold outside and he would have desaturated too fast.



I went in and registered both of us and then asked if the nurse could give him the flu shot in the car. I fully expected them to say "are you kidding?"

But, surprise, surprise - they agreed.

The nurse put on her coat, walked over to where we were parked in the handicapped spot and jumped in the front seat. She gave hubby his shot right there.



This morning, the nurse was scheduled to arrive in our home at 10:00. A decent time - not too early; not after lunch when hubby usually sleeps.

Well, hubby had to prepare mentally for this visit. He made sure he was up early. He took his time reading the newspaper while drinking his morning coffee. You can't rush when you have COPD. You become short-of-breath and have to stop. That makes it take even longer.

I got up, drank my coffee, and wrote my "morning pages" (see www.theartistsway.com by Julia Cameron for an explanation of "morning pages"), then went into the kitchen and had breakfast. Hubby came in and sat down to eat too, but I was off to the races. Bing-bang up in the shower, blow-dryed my hair, dressed, make-up, made the bed, like I was going off to work again.

Hubby was still eating his toast.

I finally got him upstairs an hour before the nurse was due to arrive. It took him that long to wash, dress and take his puffers.

By 10:00 we were ready and waiting.

After the vaccines were done, hubby had to go and rest.

"Whew" he said, "what a morning!" Then we both looked at each other and laughed.

Our "morning" as it was today, used to take "minutes" in the old days.

At least we can laugh about it. And at least we still have each other.

2 comments:

JOY said...

Wow, that's neat the nurse put her coat on & came out to the car to give the shot. I would have expected a "no way" too. I don't believe in them but some people swear by them. I rarley catch a cold & I'm in public around people coughing & sneezing all the time in the winter. My hubby hasn't been out in almost a week now. He hung his head out the window to talk to the neighbour yesterday & that lasted less than 4 minutes as there's a bit a snow & the air is VERY cold you can see your breath for sure. So he says that hurts his lungs & is very reluctant to venture out.I tried to look at the artists way but it said bad gateway, so I'll try again in a while. Hugs, Joy

Wendy said...

Hi Joy
I would never have a flu shot either, but hubby insists. So, I'd rather have one and make him happy.
It's hard when they have to stay indoors. I hope your weather warms up a bit, so you can take him out.
I haven't learned about "links" yet, so I just typed in the artist's way address in the post. Guess that's not the way to do it.
Julia Cameron wrote a book called "The Artist's Way" and it is a lesson or work-book to inspire budding writers and artists to practice their craft. One thing she insists on is "morning pages". You just sit down first thing in the morning (half asleep is good) and write whatever comes into your head. Just get it down on paper. Allow the words to flow. Doesn't matter if spelling, etc. is screwy. It's channelling the info or writing with spirit or going with the flow. The purpose is to kick-start your writing career and also you tune into your inner self. Ive been doing this for about 2 years now and I rarely miss a morning. I just love it!
Hugs,
Wendy
p.s. coffee is essential!