I miss family. You know, the every one sitting around the dinner table kind of family. Before dinner, kids bustling about in and out of the house, mom yelling, “Just stay in or out! Not both!” The pangs of hunger racking my guts so bad that I truly believe, “If I don’t eat soon I’ll die!” I yell out! Around dinner time when the meal is simmering, stewing or whatever it’s doing to produce its aroma aloft in the air seems to be a time of congregation around the kitchen. My two older brothers and I are roaming around the half cooked meal like lions circling their next prey. Being the youngest of three boys in our family meant that I was lucky if I was tossed a scrap of something ninety percent eaten by my older brothers. Mom would chase us out of “her” kitchen with a wooden spoon bellowing, “Get outta here! It’s not ready yet,” with all the love she could muster! My mom’s dinners were so good that a lot of times my brothers and I would be perfectly willing to put up with a few swats from the dreaded wooden spoon for a bite of this, a nibble of that. Actually laughing while mom beat our behinds with her wooden spoon. It did sting but like I said, Mom’s cookin is Moms … [Read more...]
Change
I myself have spent the last 13 years hovering in the clouds. Living at high elevation seemed to be my calling. Actually it has been my passion for small mountain life and the snowboarding that comes every winter. I recently saw a bumper sticker in my town of Mammoth Lakes that simply red “My life is your vacation: Mammoth Local”. It Couldn’t be better said than this. Can you imagine living in a town where everyone knows you? The checkers at the super market call you by your first name. I see my friends daily whether they are strolling down the the “main drag” in town or pull up next to me in our “four light” town. Four traffic lights! That’s right…four, Quattro. But of course with any good comes the not-so-good. Get pulled over and everyone knows. Get injured or seriously ill, everyone knows. Marital problems, everyone’s a therapist. Kid on drugs, you’re totally screwed. Go to 12 step meetings…well, that could go either way I suppose. My point is that choosing a life of intimacy in a small town has been part of my life, our lives, and the only life Sophia has known for her duration of eighteen months. Change is coming. Through life’s circumstances my family … [Read more...]
Allen’s Final Chapter
This is part 3 of an inspirational story written by Sophia's Dad. You can read part 1 here and part 2 here. Gripping the edges of the dentist’s chair while the drilling commenced and waiting for the assistant to suck out the saliva in my mouth before I aspirate into my lungs, I feel my phone vibrate in my pocket. It’s 5:35pm on Tuesday. Given a brief moment of reprieve from the seemingly endless drilling, scraping and oh yeah; readjusting that dam device that keeps your mouth cranked open almost to the point of permanently creating a smile like the Joker from Batman I peak at my cell. “Alan just passed away five minutes ago.” His estranged father at his bedside, his fiancé driving home from work having just left the Care Center (which I admitted Allen to just a week prior) a few hours earlier. “He sat on the edge of the bed,” straining to readjust himself to get his cancer filled lungs to cooperate as best as possible. He simply said, “I can’t hold on any longer, I’m ready to go.” His head dipped down on his chest. There were a few feeble attempts to fill his lungs with precious oxygen and he was gone. He left this world with a whimper, not a bang. To some, … [Read more...]
Allen’s Update
This is part two of an inspirational story Allen's Gift, written by Sophia's Dad Brett, a Physician's Assistant. Intractable vomiting. In the medical world the word “intractable” is used when nothing given as treatment or therapy relieves the given symptom. In this case vomiting. I mean think about it, remember the last time you had “the stomach flu”? Or how about the last time you went out and drank way too much only to spend the next 2 hours in front of the toilet? For me, vomiting represents one of those bodily functions that causes the afflicted to be so miserable, so “please God I’ll do anything if you make it stop” type of agony. But in the back of our minds we KNOW the vomiting will end soon and life will once again return to normal for us. I spoke with Allen today on my cell. “Hey buddy, you hanging in there?,” I asked. “Doing the best (long pause) I can with (long pause) what God has given ( long pause) me to handle today,” whispers Allen with obvious great effort. “I wanna (long pause) go home so bad, so (another long pause) tired of this”. This time the long pause came from me. “Hello? Brett? (long pause) Hello?” “I’m here Allen,” I say as … [Read more...]
Allen’s Gift
I’ve been thinking of how I will say it, how I will turn someone’s life upside down as I move from patient room to patient room. Room one holds a gentleman that is having trouble getting his diabetes under control and has diabetic kidney and eye disease as a consequence of his over indulgence. My second patient, who has known coronary artery disease has been experiencing chest pain over the last week, awakening him every night with “an elephant on my chest” in a pool of sweat. “Luckily he is not currently having any chest discomfort,” my nurse tells me. I scan the list of my morning patients; hypertension, follow up labs, complete physical exam, back pain, trouble swallowing, shortness of breath, abdominal pain and weight loss. Then it’s lunch with a stack of lab results, adjusting blood thinners, pathology reports and back to seeing my patients at 1 o’clock. Then I see Allen on my schedule! There it is at 1:30 pm. FOLLOW UP RESULTS. The young man is in his late 20’s, is engaged and has the whole world in front of him. Except I’m going to tell him in the most tactful, gentle, and compassionate way, that he likely will not be around in a year. That all the planning he … [Read more...]
So You’re a New Dad?
As Sophia’s mom is getting ready for work, I can’t help but dread the thought of her departing. Yes, I love Kelly and will miss her while she’s at work, off to her “easy” job. For the real full time work is done at home with Sophia. New dads should actually be awarded some sort of “chip” or “medallion” like the various 12 step groups around. I could totally picture this, “Any new dads here celebrating 30 days of intact sanity? 60 days? 90 days?” New dads look purely astonished as a dad walks up, smile intact, hair done just right, clothes matching and accepts his 1 year medallion for not only staying sane with a “little one” at home but for keeping his child alive and safe for a whole year! “No friggin way,” the new dad yelps! “How can any new dad keep from going crazy or losing it for a whole year?” Moms are a different breed compared to dads. New moms seem to fall into motherhood so naturally. New dads are in a constant state of anxiety and low grade fear when left alone with their baby or toddler while mom heads out for the day to work or god forbid an over night event with the other new moms. However, I must admit we play it off pretty darn good. Yet I find myself … [Read more...]
Infant Illness With Rash…What is Roseola?
Have you experienced your infant being ill and having a rash at the same time? Last week Kelly and I took Sophia to the park and after a little while we noticed she just wasn’t her excitable self…you know, the arms flapping, the wiggly legs, the high pitched hoots that all start when she sees the park. Kelly brought it up while we were there. I had to admit that something was amiss. The following day I had Sophia duty. Upon awakening from her noontime nap, she always lets us know she’s awake with a cry that says, “Hey I’m up! I’m down here in my room. Are you coming?” So I looked at the “ole video monitor” and there she was standing up in her crib looking towards her door. As I picked Sophia up, I immediately felt heat radiating off her flushed cheeks! “Hmmm, what has Sohia gotten herself into now?", I silently thought. A 101.8 fever! Tylenol was fast at hand and after a bit her temp mellowed to 99.6 or so. For the next 2 long days…fever, fever, fever and no others symptoms. She didn't have a cough, nor was she tugging at her ear. Her voice was fine, appetite remained good, and activity was as normal as could be…with a fever that is. “Could this be?", yep. … [Read more...]
Kids These Days are So Much Older
As I drove along the highway with my eleven year old daughter the sites passed us by like any other day until suddenly she said, “kids at my school are so weird and they act really bad a lot of the time.” I asked, “what do you mean?” “I mean,” she replied, “that the majority of kids cuss and say the ‘f’ word a lot! They think it’s so cool!” I thought, “are you kidding me?” I mean, these are elementary school kids! “Oh yeah,” says my daughter, “and my friend is wearing really ‘S’ clothes all the time and it really bugs me.” “What does ‘S’ mean?”, I asked. After playing a short word game with my daughter, I came to the conclusion that ‘S’ stood for sexy. When I found out the kind of outfits her friend was wearing I was blown away. Sixth grade! "Kids these days are so much older," I thought. On another drive, with another child of mine, (this time with my fifteen year old son) out of the blue I asked if he had seen a certain kid that he really enjoyed spending time with. “What is he up to these days?”, I asked. “He’s smoking a lot of weed and thinking it’s so cool,” was my son’s reply. I said, “what?” “There are a lot of kids who are selling weed and a lot of them smoke … [Read more...]
Teething Terror
Are you dealing with teething terror? Babies first teeth generally begin to appear between the ages of 4 to 7 months. Some “late bloomers” don’t get any teeth until 12 months or older. In rare instances a baby can even be born with a couple. Experts disagree whether or not teething actually causes any symptoms at all. Some believe it’s just coincidence that the classic symptoms that some attribute to teething occur. These symptoms include: drooling, fussiness, gum swelling and sensitivity, biting behavior, refusing to eat, sleep troubles and a low grade fever (below 100.5 degrees fahrenheit). Any raise in temperature above this will warrant a trip to your baby’s health care provider to rule out other causes such as the dreaded ear infections I wrote about in an earlier article. From my experience, I am convinced that teething definitely causes some if not all of the above symptoms. Things you can do to ease your baby's discomfort alleviate teething terror are having them suck on a cold teething ring that has been in your refrigerator or if they are eating solid foods then cold yogurt or applesauce for instance may sooth their aching gums. Teething biscuits or crackers … [Read more...]
Does Your Baby Have Diaper Rash?
Does your baby have diaper rash? If you are a new parent, sooner or later while you’re changing a diaper you may notice a rash on your baby’s bottom and or the genital area. What is diaper rash? How can it be prevented? What should you put on it, if anything at all? Diaper rashes are common between the ages of 4 to 15 months. They may become more frequent when baby begins eating solid food. There are 2 main types; those caused by yeast or fungus and those caused by direct irritation of the skin from acidic stools. Candida (yeast) is typically fiery red with scattered red dots around the periphery called “satellite lesions” and grow in warm moist area. Causes include recent antibiotic usage by baby or by a breast feeding mom, staying in a wet diaper too long, and frequent stools. Treatment includes frequent diaper changes (keeping area dry) and over the counter creams that target fungus and yeast. Ask your pharmacist if you can’t locate. Acidic stools can cause a painful skin irritation. These stools begin after baby begins eating solids. These are areas of skin that look “raw” or irritated. Treatment is aimed again at keeping baby dry (frequent diaper changes) and … [Read more...]
