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In my last guest Blog I wrote about the fact that on Monday I will be having surgery and some of the things I have done to prepare my home and family. This Blog is about the planning I need to do for the time I am away at the hospital.
Hospital stays are typically as short as possible in years past I might have expected to stay for five or more days, but this time I don’t expect to be hospitalized for more then a day of two (if I am lucky it will be 2 days!). Short or long the fact is, my family is going to be on their own for a few days, and it’s difficult to imagine how they are going to get along without me!
It’s very important that our children aren’t worried and overly concerned. It’s also important that They have the chance to visit me and see that I am fine. Even with a short hospital stay it’s also important that my children SEE other’s taking care of me, and that what has happened is going to take me some time to recover.
Daddy, will have to bring them for a visit–as hard as it might be with such a short stay. It’s also important that our children learn to understand compassion and how to behave when someone they care about is in the hospital. So, Daddy will have to bring me Flowers! A card and maybe some candy…
Ordinarily I could care less if anyone stopped by while I was drugged up and in a hospital bed. Actually, I would rather be left alone but as I said above this is an important learning and emotional experience for our children. Call me selfish but, part of my preparing for surgery includes making sure Daddy has Flowers, a Card and Candy to bring me while I am at the hospital.
Not that I don’t think my husband is able or willing to do this on his own, but I know things will be hectic and crazy at home so I took care of the issue without putting the stress on him. Plus this way I get the Flowers and Candy I like the most! All he needs to do Monday evening is bring these things and the children for a visit.
Another thing I do to try and help my children deal with the fact I am having surgery is to give them something special to hold onto while I am at the hospital. Depending on the age of the child at the time, I have found some interesting ways to do this, with my jewelry.
You can’t have jewelry on during surgery and I ordinarily have several rings, a necklace and earrings a ware daily. So before I go to the hospital I generally pass these things out to the children for Safe Keeping. I make a little show of it by assigning each item to a family member, less important things being left in the care of the most irresponsible person and my wedding ring being safely put into Daddy’s hand.
This way my loved ones have something of me to hold onto while I am away, and something to keep if the worst thing in the world were to happen. My children have a role in taking care of mommy and it builds responsibility and compassion.
The only other thing that must be taken care of is my husband has to contact my family once the surgery is over. I just won’t be able to call mom and let her know I am fine. So, I have programmed my families numbers into my husband’s cell phone and will leave a huge note reminding him to call my mom and let her know I am fine.
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Related Blogs:
- Advance Planning Before Mom Has Surgery: Home and Family
- Adenomyosis: My Story Part #1 When Normal Is Different
- Living Wills
Anna Glendenning is a Families.com Insurance and Guest Blogger. Read her Blogs at: http://members.families.com/happymomanna/blog