Columbia Hospice Senior Solution Advisor Relates to New Book "Parent Talk"Senior Care FacilitiesUpdated on Mar 1, 2011 View more like this | Visit COLUMBIA, SC | Contact Agape Senior |
Reflection of the First of the "Nine Conversations" - Driving
In reading Scott Middleton’s “Parent Talk,” I have been reminded of a personal experience with the first of the Nine Conversations – Driving. A few years ago, after I had recently graduated from college, my grandmother’s health had begun to rapidly decline. She had been diagnosed with early stages Alzheimer’s a few years prior and had begun to show more and more signs that the disease had progressed.
I had an extremely hard time in facing this truth, as I had always seen my grandmother as a tough, brilliant and independent woman who had worked a full time job until the age of 76. Given her strong independence, it had been a tough realization to our family that it was time to have “the talk”. Looking back, I wish I would have had the knowledge and resources like I now have to help me through this trying situation. I attribute my reluctance in taking away my grandmother’s car keys to my naivety. However, I now know deep down that I was in denial and did not want to face the fact that my grandmother (my hero) was sick and no longer should be allowed on the road.
It was one of the most difficult conversations that I had to witness and my grandmother certainly did not agree with our decision. It was only after we received a call from a neighbor to tell my family that my grandmother had attempted to walk down a busy road to go to her favorite restaurant, that I knew we had made the right decision in taking away her car keys. And when we asked her about the incident, she had no recollection. She had absolutely no business in operating a vehicle that could not only injure herself, but any others around her. While this was only the first hurdle we had to face with my grandmother’s illness, I am thankful that we were able to have this conversation with her and it not only might have saved her life, but someone else’s.
Agape is a faith based organization and a recognized leader in patient centered hospice care, offering extensive services throughout the Midlands region of South Carolina. We are respected for our professional and compassionate care allowing our patients to experience a peaceful death and their families receive the support services they need so they have a special sense of spiritual and emotional peace. Columbia, West Columbia, Lexington, Cayce, Springdale, St Andrews, Pine Ridge, South Congaree, Red Bank, Batesburg Leesville, Irmo, Blythewood, Chapin, Gilbert, Gaston, Swansea, Elgin, SC. Call us at 803-454-1221 or 800-411-2427
In reading Scott Middleton’s “Parent Talk,” I have been reminded of a personal experience with the first of the Nine Conversations – Driving. A few years ago, after I had recently graduated from college, my grandmother’s health had begun to rapidly decline. She had been diagnosed with early stages Alzheimer’s a few years prior and had begun to show more and more signs that the disease had progressed.
I had an extremely hard time in facing this truth, as I had always seen my grandmother as a tough, brilliant and independent woman who had worked a full time job until the age of 76. Given her strong independence, it had been a tough realization to our family that it was time to have “the talk”. Looking back, I wish I would have had the knowledge and resources like I now have to help me through this trying situation. I attribute my reluctance in taking away my grandmother’s car keys to my naivety. However, I now know deep down that I was in denial and did not want to face the fact that my grandmother (my hero) was sick and no longer should be allowed on the road.
It was one of the most difficult conversations that I had to witness and my grandmother certainly did not agree with our decision. It was only after we received a call from a neighbor to tell my family that my grandmother had attempted to walk down a busy road to go to her favorite restaurant, that I knew we had made the right decision in taking away her car keys. And when we asked her about the incident, she had no recollection. She had absolutely no business in operating a vehicle that could not only injure herself, but any others around her. While this was only the first hurdle we had to face with my grandmother’s illness, I am thankful that we were able to have this conversation with her and it not only might have saved her life, but someone else’s.
Agape is a faith based organization and a recognized leader in patient centered hospice care, offering extensive services throughout the Midlands region of South Carolina. We are respected for our professional and compassionate care allowing our patients to experience a peaceful death and their families receive the support services they need so they have a special sense of spiritual and emotional peace. Columbia, West Columbia, Lexington, Cayce, Springdale, St Andrews, Pine Ridge, South Congaree, Red Bank, Batesburg Leesville, Irmo, Blythewood, Chapin, Gilbert, Gaston, Swansea, Elgin, SC. Call us at 803-454-1221 or 800-411-2427
