caretaker

I have a whole new found respect for people who take care of people, be that in a nursing home, at home taking care of children or elderly parents or at a hospital.

My daughter had an accident three days ago and has now a cast all the way down her left leg. There isn't much she can or is allowed to do except laying around, playing gameboy and reading comic books. She's also very antsy since she is normally a very active teenager, so her mood swings back and forth and hits me since I am the only one who is around...
Added to my regular routine in the morning is now the task of getting her ready for her half the day without me: get her to the bathroom - or make her go by herself on her crutches, make her bed all fluffy and fresh, fix breakfast, wash her and help her change into fresh clothes, make sure she is all comfy and that her casts lies on the pillows properly and get her the phone, put a double feature movie in the DVD or Video player and put her gameboy and some comic books within reach. Nice, hu?
Yesterday I had the pleasure of taking her into the shower and making sure she doesn't get her cast wet - had to be very creative! I stacked a little plastic stool on top of an upside down toybox, sat her on it, placed her casted leg outside the tub, wrapped a towel around it so it doesn't get wet and made sure that as much of her as possible was behind the shower curtain.
Then I showered her, washed her hair and the rest of her and got myself all wet, and the bathroom floor, when I showered all the foam off of her! But in the end, I had a freshly washed child, all dressed up in fluffy pyjamas and ready for the night! And boy, was I exhausted!

So I want to take this moment to say thank you to all you out there who take care of and nurse people on a daily basis! You do a terrific job and deserve a hefty bonus on your next paycheck! I don't know how you manage, seriously! It is so hard to be in this profession and not let it get to you. I find myself thinking about my daughter most of the time and about what I can do to make it easier for her. I even forget to have my own breakfast in the mornings because after tending to her, I'd be too late already and hardly have time for a decent shower...
Thank you for doing what you do - you rock!