Archive for the ‘hospital’ Category

If it wasn’t for my faith…

Posted: April 14, 2013 in bereavement, blogging, death, dementia, family, finance, friendship, Health, heaven, hospital, life, love, music, pray, religion, stroke
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Have you ever wondered how your life would have turned out and how you would have coped with life , if you hadn’t accepted Christ as your saviour?

I have, particularly in these last few weeks as we’ve had to cope with the death of first my Dad and then my Aunt Mae.faith

Just after my Dad passed away, someone said to me that, “There are only two certainties on life, one that you have been born, and secondly, that you will die” – Despite this, we all find the death of a loved one very upsetting and difficult to cope with.

It’s therefore no surprise to me that during these difficult and stressful weeks, I’ve relied heavily on God to keep me strong for my Mum and focused enough make all the required arrangements etc. So much so, I actually feel as if I’ve been running on auto-pilot for weeks now, as every day seems to have been a bit of a blur and I’m not sure I can actually tell you what I did on any particular day since the middle of February!

That said, I’m not sure I would have been able to get through these weeks if God hadn’t been there with me, as there were times when I honestly felt I couldn’t cope with any more problems, but as you can tell, I got through those days, and that I simply put down to the fact that my faith reassured me that God is with me at all times, and is helping me when my own strength has gone.

Today I thank God for my faith. Without Him, these last few weeks would have been even harder to face than they were.

Endless

Posted: March 21, 2013 in bereavement, children, death, dementia, depression, family, friendship, Health, heart, heaven, hospital, life, love, music, religion, words
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tearsThere are some things which can seem endless. Some that are good and some not so good. Things like the love and support from family and friends can feel endless which is obviously good. While a continual string of bad or events which affect your life are the complete opposite.

I’ve felt for the last few years that my life has just been one constant struggle after another between my own health problems as well as health  problems and other issues affecting other members of my family. This has all culminated in the last few weeks with my Dad passing away and now my 90-year-old aunt being admitted to hospital a couple of weeks ago with a bad chest infection and not eating or drinking, and then just a few days ago being told my aunt had probably had a stroke and it was unlikely she’d pull through.

How does that make me feel? Well at times I question God, as I’m sure we all do sometimes, “why me?”, but other times I acknowledge that God wouldn’t let me go through these experiences if he didn’t think I could handle them.

That doesn’t make me feel any better during these tough days, and it of course doesn’t make my life any easier, but it does remind me that God lives me and walks beside me in all situations, even though it may feel to me that he’s deserted me.

So when you are going through what seems like an endless string of bad things, remember God is there and is supporting you in all at all times.

The following video of Susan Best singing God is Always There will hopefully help you remember that God is always there for you:

Zero Tolerance #1 of 2

Posted: March 13, 2013 in Crime, death, friendship, Health, hospital, life, politics, Shopping, UK, words
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Zero-toleranceI don’t know about you but there seems to be Zero Tolerance posters on walls in nearly every customer facing office or public service office such as council offices, hospitals, police stations, schools, doctors surgeries, shops. My question for you today is, do these posters work?

Personally I’m not sure they do, as I doubt very much that someone who is ready to inflict any kind of abuse on a member of staff in these places, would stop and consider their actions just because they saw a zero tolerance poster! Maybe I’m wrong, as I obviously don’t have any insider knowledge on this.

However maybe the fact that these posters are even there, make it more likely that someone will come to the aid of someone who is being abused. Or does it simply makes it easier to prosecute these folks because there are warnings about the consequences of them inflicting abuse.

Maybe I’m just a little sceptical that a poster saying zero tolerance is all that’s needed to stop abuse. Hopefully I’m wrong, as I certainly do not condone abuse of any kind.

Getting Throught It

Posted: February 14, 2013 in death, depression, family, Health, heart, hospital, life, love, music, pray, religion
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In the last couple of weeks I keep coming across references to the following quote:

God may not get us out of a situation, but He will give us the strength to get through it.

I don’t think it’s coincidence that I’ve been reminded of this quote on a regular basis recently, because, as many of you will know, there are a number of situations going on in my life just now which mean I’ve finding life quite difficult at present.

The one consolation I have is that I truly believe the above words…that God will give me the strength to get through it! Therefore, no matter how distant God may seem to you just now, don’t give up, because God is with you, and He will help you get through these difficult days.

Who Am I?

Posted: February 4, 2013 in books, celebrity, Charity, cross, death, friendship, hospital, life, love, poverty, religion, school
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who are youOf the billions and billions of people who have ever lives, there is one who stands head and shoulders above the rest in terms of influence…

More schools, colleges, hospitals and orphanages have been started because of him, than because of anyone else.

More art has been created, more music written, and more humanitarian acts performed due to him and his influence than anyone else.

Great international encyclopaedias devote twenty thousand words to describing him and his influence on the world.

Even our calendar is based on his birth.

And all this he accomplished in a public ministry that lasted just three and a half years!

So who am I?

I am Jesus Christ!

It Might Be A New Year But…

Posted: January 8, 2013 in arthritis, dementia, family, friendship, Health, heart, holiday, hospital, life, love, New Year, religion
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…2013 seems to be bringing more of the same for me so far. :(

Firstly, I thought as it was the start of a new year, a time for new beginnings, I would once again make the first move to try to reconcile with brokenfriendshipseveral people who were once very close friends and confidants, but sadly for various reasons those relationships have broken down to such an extent in the last few years that not only to these folk ignore me and sometimes my husband too, but are often downright rude and cruel towards us – I certainly did not think any broken relationship merited such awful treatment, especially from people who would openly tell you they are Christians!

To be honest, I wish I hadn’t bothered again (I’ve reached out several times before to these folk), because the various people concerned either completely ignored me again, or responded in an obnoxious manner questioning why I thought I “had the right to expect them to speak to me” – At no time did I ever tell anyone I expected them to speak to me, so I was deeply hurt again.

So much for new beginnings and putting the past behind us and moving on!

I do wonder what kind of Christian does that make these folk? I’m definitely not saying I’m perfect, far from it, but I’ve felt right from the time these folk started to ignore us that things were taken out of context and exaggerated out of all proportion, and surely as Christians we should be able to rise above these disagreements, put them aside, forgive and move on…sadly not all seem to agree with me.

Secondly, health concerns for my hubby started again on New Year‘s Day again as we had to postpone our new year’s day dinner with my Mum as hubby wasn’t well enough to leave the house.

Thirdly, my own health problems seem to have peaked again since last Wednesday/Thursday although I think some of this may be down to all the other issues that have arisen since the start of the year!

hospital2Lastly, my Dad’s health has deteriorated considerably in the last week and a half as although he was previously sitting with his eyes closed all the time, he was at least responding to us when we spoke to him and was opening his eyes. However it got to the stage where he was no longer opening his eyes at all or speaking to us at all and he was also refusing to eat, drink or take any of his medication. So much so that last Friday he was admitted to hospital because he was badly dehydrated – That was a long day in itself, as the GP saw him about 3.45pm and decided he should go to hospital, although we later discovered he hadn’t bothered to order the ambulance until 5.30pm!

Meanwhile Mum and me waited at the nursing home with Dad for the ambulance as Mum was keen to ensure Dad got settled ok at hospital. What a long wait that ended up being…the ambulance didn’t turn up at the nursing home until almost 11pm. It was then about 12.20am before the doctor first spoke to us at the hospital and then about 2.40am before Dad finally got settled into a ward. By the time I dropped Mum back home and got myself home it was about 3.30am!

It turned out Dad has a chest infection and id apparently can often cause added confusion for dementia sufferers and cause then to be more sleepy and less willing to eat/drink than normal. Dad’s now being treated in hospital for his chest infection and he is beginning to become a little it more responsive when we speak to him  (not that much of what he says makes any sense), so hopefully he’ll get back to being able (and willing) to eat and drink by himself again soon.

So we’re only 8 days into 2013, but already I’d say I’m really not liking this year so far. So one thing is for certain, 2013 can really only get better, can’t it?!

My Aims 2012 – Review of the Year

Posted: December 31, 2012 in arthritis, bible, blogging, clothing, dementia, depression, family, Food, friendship, Health, heart, holiday, hospital, housework, life, love, motivation, music, pray, prayer, religion, Scotland, tennis, Travel, weight
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At the start of this year (2012), I shared with you my aims for this year (in Welcome to 2012). These were not my new year resolutions, but what I hoped to achieve this year as far as some lifestyle changes were concerned and some changes in my spiritual relationship with God.

At the end of each month since then I’ve given you an update on how I’m getting on with my aims. So now we’re on the last day of 2012, here’s my last update for this year, which will give you my honest opinions on whether I achieved, or failed, to reach my goals for this year…

  • Eat healthier
    • Over all, I would definitely say I have succeeded with this aim as I have definitely been eating much healthier when I’ve been at work, and have done ok when at home.
    • Yes there’s still room for improvement, as I have given in to my desire for chocolate on a few occasions.
    • Done ok with this ones I’m managing to continue to eat reasonably healthily while I’ve been at work, and not too bad when at home.
  • Lose some weight
    • Well I had my last weigh-in earlier today, and the news is that over the course of this year I’ve managed to lose 10 lbs.
    • I’m delighted with that as I have definitely not been on a diet, but have just been trying to eat a bit healthier and get a bit more active.
    • Hopefully if I continue doing the same things next year I’ll manage to lose a few more pounds.
  • Spend more time reading my bible
    • Some months this year I managed to spend a lot more time reading my bible than I had previously, however there were still a number of occasions when I didn’t even open my bible.
    • Overall though I’d say I’ve managed to spend more time reading my bible this year than last, though there’s definitely still plenty of room for improvement.
  • Don’t let pain rule my life
    • As many of you will know, I’ve had some health issues for a few years now, which I had hoped would have been resolved by 2 major operations. Unfortunately, despite the doctors being happy with the success of these operations, I have still been experiencing severe pain of the same nature I was getting prior to the initial diagnosis.
    • Therefore it has been an on-going struggle again this year to cope with my pain levels. Having said that though, due to all the other situations I’ve had to deal with this year, I’ve often just had to get on with things no matter how severe my pain has been.
    • On the whole I don’t think I’ve actually given in to my pain completely any more than maybe a 3 or 4 times this year, which looking back now, I find quite incredible.
  • Get back to playing tennis as stopped playing in 2003 when I first wasn’t well
    • I have failed miserably at this one!
    • There were a few times during the year when I was all set to go to the tennis club at the weekend when my friends would be there, but typically the Scottish weather put an end to those plans, and on following weeks other things would happen or we had other plans, so it just never happened.
  • Put aside a minimum of 5 minutes each day to spend some quiet-time with God
    • As with my aim to spend more time reading my bible, over the year, this has been a bit up and down – Some months I spent more than 5 minutes each day with God, others none at all.
    • Also depending on what’s been going on in my life at the time, and how I’ve been coping, some of these times with God have not exactly been quiet ones, as I’ve spent much of the time crying! They may not have been “quiet” times with God, but they were at least “times” with God where even although I couldn’t vocalise my prayers, I know God still knew what was in my heart.
  • Get back to playing the piano regularly as it’s been a while
    • I’ve failed at this one!
    • However I did get a brand new keyboard for my Christmas, therefore I will definitely make progress with in the coming weeks.
  • Go on holiday – we’ve not been away anywhere since 2002
    • Due to on-going health issues/concerns with various family members, this has not been possible.
  • Keep on top of the housework (especially the ironing mountain!)
    • I’ve said it before during some of my monthly updates, but I really do hate doing housework, and ironing is definitely my least favourite chore.
    • It’s should therefore be no surprise that I have failed miserably with this.
  • More patience and understanding of others
    • To me, I have managed to be a little bit more patient with other…though you may disagree!
    • I do find this incredibly difficult, particularly with certain people (who shall remain anonymous)
    • I continue to pray for patience daily.
  • Stop procrastinating
    • I’d say I’ve been successful with this aim, as I feel that, on the whole, I’ve managed to just get on with things.

So that’s my honest answers to how I got on this year with the aims/goals I set myself at the start of the 2012. Looking back now, I think my aims/goals have probably been too ambitious and too vague, as if I’m honest, there was probably no way I was ever going to achieve all these goals in one year. I also think my judgement on how successful I’ve been has been very subjective, so I should probably have made my goals more measurable. i.e. by measuring actual status at the start of the year and comparing with actual measurements at the end of the year.

In conclusion, I’m reasonably happy with what I’ve achieved this year. While I may not have been able to say I fully achieved very many of my goals I have made progress with a number of them which I’m definitely happy about.

How about you, how did you get on with your aims for 2012?

Whatever your aims were for this year, and regardless of whether you achieve any or all of them, I pray you managed to make progress, and that you have at least achieved all God had planned for you this year!

All Year Long

Posted: December 30, 2012 in bereavement, birthday, Christmas, death, dementia, family, Health, hospital, life, love, music, pray, religion, winter, work
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So we’re almost at the end of 2012. I don’t know about you, but this year seems to be over nearly as soon as it began! I know some will tell me that’s a sign of getting old, but I refuse to believe that, as I think it’s simply been because there’s been so much going on in my life this year…again.

emergency-signIt’s been another tough year for me:

  • Supporting my hubby as his health has deteriorated
  • Supporting my Mum for the first half of the year while she struggled to continue to look after and care for my Dad at home as his dementia worsened
  • Supporting Mum in the second half of the year as Dad first of all was in hospital for over 10 weeks and then moved into a local nursing home
  • Visiting my aunt who has been living in a care home for over 2 years and who reached the grand age of 90 in October
  • Various trips to A&E with my hubby , my Dad and my aunt – and of course they were all long waits, and sometimes during the night
  • Hubby’s retirement – which looking back on things was the best thing he could have done given how his health has deteriorated since he finished working
  • Several family bereavements
  • On-going health issues of my own

In amongst all that I’ve managed to keep working full-time, and unbelievably haven’t been off sick all year! Not quite sure how I managed that as there were some days when my pain levels were so severe I really don’t know how I managed to get through the day at work, but obviously I managed it somehow!

Anyway, enough about my year. I hope that whatever this year has brought you, good or bad, you will have made the most of your time with your friends and family as we never know what tomorrow will bring. I pray that you may have felt God‘s blessings on you during this year, and as we look ahead to 2013 you may go forward with confidence that whatever situations you have to deal with, God is by your side not just during this Christmas season, but all year-long.

All Year Long by Michael W Smith

This Christmas season I wish you joy
The wonder in every girl and boy
I  wish you gladness, the warmth and cheer
Of good friends and family gathered near

May children’s laughter in falling snow
Rekindle those  sweet scenes from long ago
May every carol, each candle bright
Remind  you why angels sang that night

If trouble finds you, this is my  prayer
May peace come into your hearts and make you strong
 And I wish you luck, the kind to last all year-long

First Christmas

Posted: December 11, 2012 in bereavement, blogging, children, death, family, heaven, hospital, life, love, music, pray, prayer, religion
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Do you remember your first Christmas as a believer of Christ?

If I’m honest, I don’t really remember my first Christmas as a believer, probably because for as long as I can remember I’ve known about God and about Christmas being a celebration of Christ’s birth.

Sadly this Christmas, will be one where many will still not know or acknowledge the true meaning of Christmas.

Sadly, there will be many who will be mourning the death of a loved one this Christmas. Whether they believe in Christ or not, this will still be a difficult time for them.

I ask that you pray for those who do not yet know Christ, that they find Him this Christmas, and for those who mourn this Christmas, that they will be reminded that Christ is with them and can help them through these most difficult of days.caden beggan

Many of you will have followed the story of Caden Beggan from North Lanarkshire, who recently lost his battle against meningococcal septicemia. His dad, David Beggan along with Union State have recorded a Christmas song to raise funds for Yorkhill Sick Kids Hospital in Glasgow.

So in honour of those who have lost a loved one this year, and especially for Caden, here’s Caden’s Song (My First Christmas):

Caden’s Song (My First Christmas)

Heart Attack!

Posted: November 3, 2012 in family, friendship, Health, heart, hospital, life, news
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I’ve been reminded all too often in the last year or so, how easy it can be to miss and/or ignore the signs of a heart attack…particularly if you are a female. From what I’ve been told, and what I’ve read. some of the symptoms experienced by women when they are having a heart attack can can different from the more familiar symptoms which men suffer.

I therefore thought it would useful to remind you females, what signs and symptoms you should look out for, as recognising the signs of a heart attack in either yourself or someone you know, could save a life!

So here’s some heart attack symptoms women should look out for:

  • Heavy pressure on the chest, not necessarily pain, but like there’s a heavy weight on the centre of left side of your chest. It may come and go and can be mistaken for indigestion.
  • Shortness of breath that comes on suddenly when you haven’t exerted any energy. Struggling to take breaths combined with discomfort in your chest is a definite sign to get checked out.
  • Nausea and vomiting – This is far more common for women than men and is often hard to link to the idea of a heart attack.
  • Sudden fatigue, which is easy to ignore as it can last for a few days or come and go – This can also combine with weak or tired muscles.
  • Dizziness and feeling light-headed.
  • Sharp pains in your torso or arms – Women are also more likely to report stabbing pains in the back, shoulder, neck or jaw.
  • Cold sweats or unexplained or extreme sweating.

So those are the symptoms to look out for, but what should you do if you or someone you’re with experiences any of the above?:

  • If you have one or more of the above symptoms for longer than five minutes, call an ambulance – quick treatment is lifesaving.
  • Even if the symptoms go away quickly, it’s still worth getting checked out by a doctor as it could be a sign that a heart attack is on the horizon and you may be able to prevent it.

In summary, if you’re in any doubt whether you/they may be having a heart attack or not, don’t delay, call an ambulance or get yourself to A&E immediately and get checked out. After all it’s better to get checked out immediately and find there’s nothing wrong than to hold off and suffer what could be a life-threatening heart attack.

Please remember these signs to look for, and most importantly take action fast as doing so may safe a life…your life!

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