I was diagnosed with Parkinson's Disease about three years ago, when my children were 9 and 11, but my pain and disability started what I describe as a cascade through my body at least five years before that. Having a truck driving husband working long, unpredictable hours meant that I spent a lot of time trying to parent from bed. Other people's children may have felt deprived to have to spend that much time basically on their own (with Mom in bed barely able to move), but my creative munchkinettes took full advantage of the situation and had lots of exciting adventures.
Most of these adventures resulted merely in messes that had to wait until Daddy came home to clean them up. There was the Kool-Aid catastrophe where Munchkinette Number One poured a whole two-litre bottle of chocolate syrup into a pitcher of Kool-Aid. That incident took place on the linoleum kitchen floor, so it was relatively easy to clean up. We had to borrow a carpet cleaner after someone discovered a whole case of grape soda cans in the pantry, and invited the other little someone to join her for a tea party on the new carpet.
I made the mistake of showing my budding scientists what happens when vinegar meets baking soda. For a whole summer, I kept running out of baking soda, vinegar, and red food colouring. The empty containers were left in the sandbox as evidence. For the level of creative thinking that my scientifically minded children displayed, you would think that at least one of them would think to hide the evidence of their science experiments.
There was one downright dangerous episode when Munchkinette Number The Other One noticed that the light bulb at the top of the floor lamp was hot. Since the bulb was sitting inside a glass basin, she reasoned that she might be able to cook in there. This experiment involved water and some plastic toy food. The sound of shattering glass provided even this Parkinsonian Parent the ability to leap out of bed and unplug the lamp before anyone was electrocuted. I am convinced that God has a whole squadron of guardian angels assigned to protect my family.
I had a “Be careful what you pray for” experience one Sunday evening. While sitting in a church service, I prayed that God would either take away at least some of my burdens, or give me more strength to face life's challenges. That night, as soon as we got home from church, my Pretty Princess the Younger proceeded to projectile vomit all over the bathroom walls and floor. It took me over an hour to clean up the mess, but God gave me the strength to get it done.
Since my Parkinson's was diagnosed and the right combination of medications prescribed, my mobility and dexterity is much better for at least part of each day. I still have to carefully balance rest and activity, but my girls are older and somewhat more responsible now. We've also been blessed with a new job for my wonderful hubby so that he can spend more time at home. Parenting is still a challenge for me, especially now that I can't drive anymore, but with help from God and many of His helpers, both angelic and human, we are muddling through life one day at a time.
I am scheduled for surgery to implant a deep brain stimulator next month. I'll keep you posted.
