They saved the day
Saturday January 05th 2013, 11:43 pm
Filed under: Family,Friends,Life

Note DebbieR’s comment two days ago about the 80-mile drive to Purlescence.

She came with her mom, a kind and gentle soul, and now I know where Debbie gets it from: the kind of people where you walk into their presence and you know you’re among friends. The kind of person who knits fingerless gloves for someone else’s daughter they’ve never met just because they really, really came in handy for Sam, who loves them and all that they convey.

We swapped stories and laughed all afternoon. There was a middle-aged man I didn’t recognize who came in and was quietly knitting away behind their backs, not looking our way, not butting in, but breaking out into a big grin at all the punchlines.  (It’s a big room like that.) I loved it. I did apologize to Nathania at one point for monopolizing the soundwaves and she grinned and waved me away, You’re fine.

Pamela was there, and bless her, came over at one point and told me, You’re not drinking enough.  She grabbed the cute little 7 oz thermos that Michelle had given me as a souvenir from Japan and went and refilled it, taking good care of me when I wasn’t bothering to myself: without a colon I have to drink 8 oz every two hours. Debbie and her mom approved. Go Pamela.

Near the end, Debbie had a thought and asked, And by the way, how are you?

I hesitated but confessed: I had woken up this morning with BAM, instant Crohn’s flare, totally unexpected and out of the blue. It did get a little better as the day went on–and then all this laughing and loving and I’d completely forgotten about it. It’s not gone, I added, but it’s a whole lot better than it was.

Crossing my fingers.

To be more specific: this morning’s angry belly had had me thinking, if I barf I’m in the ER. Do. Not. Barf. I hesitated, but there was just no way I was going to miss out on this afternoon, and certainly not after they’d driven all this way for it.

And then afterwards I found myself feeling like, and look at me now! This works! (If only it were always so easy.)

I ran a quick grocery run, got home, hadn’t quite finished putting things away when the phone rang.

It was our daughter Sam. She *did* barf, and she *did* end up in the ER. Turns out someone had offered her a quinoa salad at a New Year’s Eve party, not realizing that couscous mixed in there means wheat–and Sam’s a celiac. Throw in a lupus flare and an ITP platelet crash and her roommate ended up picking her up and putting her in a wheelchair and getting her to the ER faster, she told us, than the paramedics could have done it.

The roommate brought her knitting and started and finished an entire scarf in the 24 hours it took the doctors to decide to admit my daughter.

Taking deep breaths and saying lots of prayers. And wishing I could send DebbieR and her mom to make Sam laugh like they did me, while grateful to Sam’s roommate who sounds like she’s pretty good at that herself.


13 Comments so far
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(Blush) Thank you, for helping make my day extra special. And I so wish I could make Sam laugh and feel better. I’m so very glad her roommate was quick and got her where she needed to be. But 24 hours to decide to admit? Even with a completed scarf that must have been a long, long wait. Sending healing thoughts to both of you.

Comment by DebbieR 01.06.13 @ 12:37 am

Wishing Sam a speedy recovery, and feeling somewhat in awe of the heroic measures you and your daughter go through in order to eat and live well.

Comment by Debbi 01.06.13 @ 5:31 am

Thankful that Sam’s roommate is both aware and responsive. Phew. Prayers for everyone involved!!

Comment by Channon 01.06.13 @ 5:36 am

thank goodness for that roommate! praying for Sam to make a quick recovery

Comment by bev 01.06.13 @ 9:02 am

Glad to hear that Sam is recovering well and that her roommate is on the ball. Also glad to know that you’re doing okay with people to keep you on the ball!

Comment by Kathy in San Jose 01.06.13 @ 9:16 am

My prayers for both you and Sam! Stay well– both of you!

Comment by Don Meyer 01.06.13 @ 11:13 am

Wow, Sam has an awesome roommate. That is someone to be grateful for one’s entire life.

Comment by twinsetellen 01.06.13 @ 1:40 pm

Sending good thoughts Sam’s way! Got similar call this morning, Dad went to ER and was admitted. Still waiting on diagnosis, but CAT scan eliminated another stroke as a possibility.

Comment by Diana Troldahl 01.06.13 @ 2:19 pm

How rough to have so much perfectly good food be poison to your system. I hope Sam will find a way to use her hard fought public health training to find ways to make the world safer for people with unusual health issues.

Comment by LauraN 01.06.13 @ 3:25 pm

I’m taking deep breaths with you…

Sending prayers for Sam to get over this quickly and for you all to deal with the helplessness from being so far from her.

Thanking God for Sam’s roommate!

Comment by Suzanne from Montreal 01.06.13 @ 8:09 pm

Alison, I loved being able to meet you “in person” yesterday! Thank you for a wonderful afternoon!
We are certainly praying for Sam, and also asking blessings on her top-notch room mate!

Comment by Gelene (DebbieR's mom) 01.06.13 @ 8:38 pm

If it is nausea you’re dealing with, try Nux Vomica. Homeopathic, but boy does it work. And yes, good company to take your mind off things helps a lot, too.

Speedy recovery to all!

Comment by Tinebeest 01.07.13 @ 1:10 am

I’m sorry for Sam’s health emergency but very grateful she has such an observant, smart and caring roommate!

Comment by (formerly) no-blog-rachel 01.07.13 @ 6:44 am



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