Caregiving: campus visit PM

     Part of any campus is the town that surrounds it. Eating lunch at an Irish Pub at a sidewalk table on a tree lined street was a perfect finishing touch. Megan enjoyed Shepherd’s Pie while Patti and I tried Boxty’s (a traditional dish, common in the Irish Countryside, made from a Potato Pancake rolled and stuffed with various fillings).

     Because of MS symptoms of cognitive dysfunction I don’t know what Patti will remember or even be able to comprehend at times. Sometimes she’d ask almost every 10 minutes, “Where are we?” or “What is this place.” Other times she might make a remark leaving me believing she was tuned in. That’s kind of the way it is.

     With her progression I’ve learned to get the work done first by myself and then return with Patti in a more fun outing. She can then be involved but in a lighter sense, laughing, and having family time. Keeping the atmosphere “off the wall” unquestionably helps.  

     Alas for Megan, trying to be “kewl” (formerly known as “cool”) can seem out of sync when I get ramped up tilting at windmills to keep Patti amused and focused. By the end of the day, Megan was hiding in her hands and mumbling, “I don’t know you people.” <grin>

                   

     Of course there is always the risk of the darker side of MS symptoms flaring up. You just have to be prepared and hope for the best. Keep timetables loose, MS sets its own. As that lovable, raving, knight-errant Don Quixote once offered as advice; “Patience, and shuffle the cards.”