My dad's been in hospital for a week now, and the latest news is he may need a operation tomorrow, though we should find out more in the morning.
You reach a point with all this back and forth where you long for a time when everything wasn't built around health appointments. For someone from a generation that doesn't go to the doctor unless their face has fallen off - and even then it would be reluctantly - my dad has spent a lot of time at the hospital or the doctors' over the past few years. This is great in the sense he's being treated and getting help, but I do think it's conspired to make him more paranoid and careful than he used to be.
When things are as they are, this could lead to putting too much aid in place, potentially too early. This is where my dad is at the moment, following a couple of incidents where he'd basically lost consciousness in a challenging situation - either on the floor or in bed. Consequently, he now has a pendant alarm and is about to have carers visiting twice a day to check he's safe.
While the upshot of this is we'll be more reassured of his wellbeing, there is a chance it will make him too cautious and less prepared to challenge himself with the small amounts of exercise that go with just living your life instead of being super-careful: there was a time when everything wasn't so built around cautiousness.
Now, the latest news is my dad may have another operation tomorrow to go with the various procedures he's had over the past five years, with the most dramatic one being literal brain surgery. I just hope it won't be one too many for him just at the point when he's gradually, reluctantly, finding his feet.
You reach a point with all this back and forth where you long for a time when everything wasn't built around health appointments. For someone from a generation that doesn't go to the doctor unless their face has fallen off - and even then it would be reluctantly - my dad has spent a lot of time at the hospital or the doctors' over the past few years. This is great in the sense he's being treated and getting help, but I do think it's conspired to make him more paranoid and careful than he used to be.
When things are as they are, this could lead to putting too much aid in place, potentially too early. This is where my dad is at the moment, following a couple of incidents where he'd basically lost consciousness in a challenging situation - either on the floor or in bed. Consequently, he now has a pendant alarm and is about to have carers visiting twice a day to check he's safe.
While the upshot of this is we'll be more reassured of his wellbeing, there is a chance it will make him too cautious and less prepared to challenge himself with the small amounts of exercise that go with just living your life instead of being super-careful: there was a time when everything wasn't so built around cautiousness.
Now, the latest news is my dad may have another operation tomorrow to go with the various procedures he's had over the past five years, with the most dramatic one being literal brain surgery. I just hope it won't be one too many for him just at the point when he's gradually, reluctantly, finding his feet.