Monday, May 3, 2010

my momma

 my momma and me a few years ago after my last collegiate soccer game

i hope everyone had a great weekend.  my mom is still felling really, really awful and she is having allergic reactions to the oral steroids the doctors have her on so her body is covered in hives and her throat and tongue are still swollen.  she's having trouble eating because her body is so out of whack, she's even reacting to her "safe" foods.  asthma and allergies go hand in hand, so now her asthma is giving her a lot of problems.  houston's air quality doesn't exactly help, so she has been looking to move either near national jewish hospital in denver or johns hopkins.  she is a patient at both hospitals which are stellar in the fields of asthma and allergies.  she's feeling really down and frustrated.

 it's killing me to see her go through this, and i feel completely and utterly helpless.  please, please continue to pray for her.  

while i have pretty severe food allergies, mine are nothing compared to my mom's.  she is essentially allergic to everything she eats, so she eats very small amounts throughout the day and is on a strict regiment of strong antihistamine medications.  living with severe food allergies and having had multiple anaphylactic reactions is terrifying to say the least, yet my mother is still the strongest, most positive, upbeat person i know. 

some people have asked me what exactly she is allergic to, and simply put: everything.  i know it doesn't make sense, but essentially we monitor her diet with the "parts per million" ppm.  as she's gotten older, we've had to decrease her threshold to "parts per trillion" or ppt.  she's primarily allergic to sulfites, which are preservatives found in everything and can also be naturally occurring. she obviously has to eat in order to sustain life, but she has to do so in small amounts, so as not to trigger a reaction - it depends on the quantity of ppms or ppts in the food she's eating.  it's all complicated and i won't bore you with the details, but suffice it to say, it's trial and error sometimes, unfortunately.

i'm kind of frazzled right now, so the old woman kicking ass story with her cane will have to wait.  thanks for sticking around even while i have nothing to entertain you with.  i'll try to be back later today.

oh, and while we were in the hospital she made me promise to tell my blog bfffffs two things.  she was a liiiiittle out of it on all the drugs and oxygen she was receiving and made me promise: 

(1) i would post a pic of her looking all ET-like:


(2) she is convinced that hospital bed sheets smell like poop and she does NOT appreciate poopie sheets.  she just wanted you all to know.


Meredith

39 comments:

Lindsey said...

Your poor Mom! Hope she feels better and back to normal ASAP!! Poor thing!

Desiree Lynn said...

My heart is with you and your family. *hugs*

KatiePerk said...

Thinking about you guys. Hope she is feeling better soon!

Carol {Everyday Delights} said...

I thinking about you guys and sending prayers for a speedy recovery!

Unknown said...

Your poor mama...she doesn't deserve to be going through this. {No one does for that matter}

Haha...you got me laughing with the finger glow. That's my sons favorite part about the ER...he becomes ET instantly!!! Lol

P.S. You've got your moms nose :)-

Salt said...

Oh this breaks my heart. :( She's in my thoughts and I hope that she gets better quickly! I can't even begin to imagine what this must be like.

SurferWife said...

Mer Bear, I have been thinking about you and your mom all weekend. I'm so sorry she isn't feeling any better.

I know you and I know you will stay strong for your momma. Many xoxoxox's to you and your whole family.

oh, and please keep a can of Lysol or some nice linen spray in your purse for your mother. She should not be forced to smell poop sheets.

Anonymous said...

I hope she gets better soon. I complain because I'm lactose intolerant. I can't imagine how horrible it must be to be allergic to all food.

foxy said...

Keeping the prayers going. Hopefully she starts feeling better soon.

Kelly @ turned UP to ELEVEN! said...

You've been on my mind all weekend. My thoughts and prayers and well wishes continue to be with your mom and family.

The ET bit made me chuckle. I'm glad she is keeping her humor through all of this.

Take care of your mom and yourself girl we will be here waiting for you when you get back! oxoxox

SaraPlaysHouse.com said...

Good grief--thinking of you guys! And you take as long a break as you need--the blogosphere can wait. Real life can't. <--A realization I've come to over the past few months.
P.S. Hospital sheets DO smell like poop. I don't care if they've just been washed or not. Your mom is VERY wise.

Cara Smith said...

It's still tough when you still feel crappy, but at least she got to go home.

My FIL shares all kinds of thing when he's loopy in the hospital.

carrie1 said...

Well at least she has a sense of humor... drugged up or not!

Poopy sheets... I can't stop laughing. =)

Sending good wishes your way. =)

Unknown said...

I can't even imagine :(
And I thought my allergies were bad. Never will I whine again. Thinking of her... I hope they can fix her poor self really soon!!!
*Hugs to you all*

courtney said...

Your poor mom, that sounds just horrible :( Thinking of you and your fam!

Candice Pair said...

I'm sorry to hear about your mother...thats awful!!

Cathy said...

Oh no, flashy's mom! Get better soon!!! I do like that she wanted to make us laugh, but I feel terrible that you all are going through this. Let her know that I am drinking a chocolate shake from the Dairy Queen in her honor right now. I'm assuming she can't have one, ever, so I'm taking one for the team here. I don't care if I gain a lb or 2.

Confessions of a Mother, Lawyer & Crazy Woman said...

That sounds so hard for her! I am sorry your mom is dealing with this. Her allergies sound awful, and scary. As do poop sheets, please send her my best regards and tell her I hope she is doing better soon!

Macey said...

Awww, that's so sad. I feel bad for her AND you, for reals. I'm not just sayin' that. My brother has a hard time with allergies...but nothing near as bad as that. That's like being allergic to the sun...something you NEED to live a healthy life!
Anyway, you are still in my prayers. You know that you shouldn't feel helpless...God never rests and he is vigilant in keeping your momma going. You know that, though, I think. :)
Anyway. Tell the orderlies to get their butts in there and change the sheets!

Blicious said...

sending you positive thoughts! your family is in my prayers.

hugs!

brandi

Blicious said...

sending you positive thoughts! your family is in my prayers.

hugs!

brandi

jessalyn said...

i thought about you a lot this weekend! i'm sorry momma flash isn't feeling better :(

i am keeping you and mom and the rest of your fam in my thoughts and prayers!

would the hospital frown on you bringing in some nice egyptian cotton 1000 thread counts? b/c that's what mom deserves. just tell the nurse that the trifecta says that's the way it needs to be.

<3
xoxo

Claire Kiefer said...

haha way to honor your mama's requests! allergies are scary, and I hope she feels better right away . . .

Gabby said...

Wow, I am so sorry she is still struggling! I hope she gets better soon, that must be so scary!

Hannah said...

Aw I really hope she gets better soon!

Brittany said...

Goodness, I feel so bad for your mom! I really hope she starts to get better soon. I'll be praying for her. Hang in there Meredith. I'd be a wreck too if my mom was going through this. She's like my best friend.

P.S - John's Hopkins is like 20 min from me. Great hospital!

JUST ME said...

I went through something like this with my mom a few months ago. My prayers are REALLY with you both. Do your best to keep her positive. She needs it!!

Melissa said...

That sounds just awful, I'll keep her in my thoughts.

Would they let you use your own sheets at the hospital? I know people who have to go in frequently get so they can take their own stuff in.

Jessi said...

Oh my goodness!! I'm returning from a li'l bloggy hiatus and am catching up on the haps in your life... I will be praying for your lovely momma...
xoxo J

brooke said...

okay the last two things had me smiling big time! love that she still has her sense of humor even through her pain...

i am sending prayers to your family and seriously pray your mom recovers quickly...my daughter has one food allergy and while i get frustrated with it sometimes i hear your story and you mom's and am thankful it is minimal...definitely keep us posted!!!

{andthisiswhatshesaid} said...

poor mom... her finger thing is cool, but the poopie sheet thing is NOT!

The Only Girl said...

You are two good looking ladies!

I'll keep up my good thoughts for her and all your family. This must be very difficult for all of you.

xo

Unknown said...

Oh Meredith!
I am so sorry she's not doing any better and potentially having to move hospitals. I'm sure she feels like crap, but she is so lucky to have you. I continue to keep you all in my thoughts and prayers. I hope things start looking up soon. I love the photo of the two of you---gorgeous women!

tara said...

so sads!! can she eat cheeseburgers?!

Crazy Shenanigans-JMO said...

Oh my, I hate to hear this! She seems like such an upbeat and great person so I hate that she's down right now. Hopefully things will get better soon!

bananas. said...

even after all the trauma of yucky allergies, she's still able to joke around and make a funny...definitely meredith's mama.

ScoMan said...

Sorry to hear your mum isn't through the woods yet.

It sounds very complicated and I imagine is difficult for her and all of you who love her.

I hope she gets well soon.

PS The ET pic is great.

Monkey and Bean said...

First, your mother is in my prayers. I hope that she gets some relief soon.

Second, as you know I'm sure, allergies build upon each other. So if you are reacting to pollen in the air, then you body might suddenly overreact to the next food you eat. I deal with this, as I too have a lot of allergies. Nothing like your mother. Any way, the point is, this time of year must be hell for her with the airborne allergens so high right now. Also, I am allergic to benadryl. BENADRYL! Although, really I am just allergic to the preservatives in it, but in any case, I have to stay far away from it!

beautyparler said...

Sending you & your mom good vibes! Hope she gets better soon & quick.