Always is when I go away for the weekend with my family...
You can guarantee when I come back he's "been ill". EVERY TIME. So I phoned him - first sentence "I've been ill". Like its my fault because I went away!
STILL not taking all his medication that the GP gave him so I offer ZERO sympathy. Basically, wants me to tell him how he can feel better - "Take the meds the GP has given you Dad, if that fails then go an see you're GP but I'm not a doctor."
His words - "I desperately need you to visit the weekend." "I've got no food in the house" (Brother lives literally 5 mins drive from him - I live 35-40 mins. Brother is probably laying low). Anyway, he knows my car is in the garage so I'm struggling for transport and he knows my wife works weekends so may need our other car. So I tell him I can't promise. Anyone would have thought I'd told him I'd murdered the family next door.
Apparently, I'm "letting him down" and "need to arrange something", and "wife needs to understand". Of course the standby offer of home delivery groceries is not good enough - he doesn't want to spend the £30 minimum - they have to be hand delivered by me!
I've tried setting boundaries, I've said no can do, I've tried ignoring, I've tried just not doing. Give him his due he's relentless in his quest to get me to do what he wants!
Theres a lot of traffic out there on the roads.... Where I work we've been told has been identified as critical. So even in the event of severe lockdown we're allowed to go to work if needs be to keep things running.
Your dad does not need food. He does not need money to go to the betting places. He is taken care of.
If he does something to get attention, like fall or whatever, it would be a shame but it may also be a blessing in disguise because it will show him that your first priority is your wife. He will see that you will not jump when he calls.
Anyway, you know that you can’t leave. Paul, you are a devoted husband and father. Your family comes first. You aren’t going to lose sight of that.
You will get used to staying away from him and he is going to get used to you being away and eventually accept it. Don’t listen to his complaints. He will call your brother. Your brother won’t go either.
Your dad will figure it out. No one likes what is happening with this virus but take advantage of not being with your dad.
Glad to hear your wife’s surgery went well. I hope she will recover as quickly as possible.
Stay in your house except for essential journeys such as fetching supplies (if you can't arrange delivery) or medical emergencies requiring hospital treatment (your own! Not somebody else's!) or work that cannot be either postponed or carried out at home.
I genuinely do not understand why our dear fellow citizens seem to be having such trouble with this simple instruction.
Fully expect in a few weeks I'm going to get "I can't cope" and there'll be some life or death emergency that means I'll break the curfew.
Even with the NHS under such pressure I wouldnt bet against him "having a fall" to get some attention.
I explained that to him - its on the news. He plays stupid then. Is that what it means? Thats another of his tricks, play dull if it works to your advantage.
After all this, he still said, "so you're coming over sunday then?" Another of his tricks - sweep any conversation or info you don't like under the carpet and carry on as if it didnt exist.
Even if it wasnt for CV I wouldnt go over this weekend with wife coming out of hospital....
So yes he does get stuff delivered. lol. But not food from a supermarket. Crazy isnt it?
Oh I know hes got money in the house too. Hes lying about that.
Of course, with old people unable to go out they can't get access to cash now. There is NO WAY that there is not an alternative way to pay rather than cash on a monday morning. I offered this to Dad -I'll phone them, I bet I can pay for the next month over the phone.
BUT, of course, he doesnt really want the problem fixed, he wants to use the problem as an EXCUSE.
Best wishes to your wife. Hope her surgery went well and that she will heal and start to feel better. Give an update when you get the chance.
Take care, Paul.
Dad wants you to visit to know his Master Manipulating Skills still work. Once it sinks in that they don't - get ready for one giant tantrum!
CM is correct, unfortunately, old fools who won't isolate are not going to fare well in the ER triage.
This could be very rough indeed.
- avoid ALL non-essential contact with other people."
Ah, but that 1) applies to others and 2) you aren't other people*, you are family and 3) it IS essential...
Thus spake dad...
(* I know it applies to family as well, but this is DAD's thinking - me, Me, ME!)
((no money for MOW? I thought he didn't do deliveries...))
Focus on immediate family, call to check in on him and silent treatment when he starts anything. Just dead silence. Let him rant and ramble on, just tune it out.
It is both worse than that, and - in a cold, calculating way - not as bad.
If the number of cases does rise as sharply as feared, ICU and acute beds will not be crammed with selfish elders. The selfish (or even not at all selfish) elders will probably not get through triage. They will die elsewhere.
The message is really simple. Why are you giving him so many irrelevant side-issues to whine about instead of the one really simple message?
If you are over 70 and have underlying health conditions -
That includes you, Pops! Twice over!
- avoid ALL non-essential contact with other people.
I told him earlier "Dad I'm not really supposed to drive around anyway" Silence.
"Dad I've got kids who've been to school recently, its a really bad idea" Silence.
"Dad at the moment, I'm balancing looking after the kids, working from home, and soon my wife will be recovering from an operation"
Then I get "But I'm stuck in with nothing to do so you'll have to visit".
Not unexpected to be honest. As I've said before, is his head, somehow its life and death that I visit to see him. I dont get it to be honest but he'll never change.
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/covid-19-guidance-on-social-distancing-and-for-vulnerable-people/guidance-on-social-distancing-for-everyone-in-the-uk-and-protecting-older-people-and-vulnerable-adults
Mind you, he'll be getting it through the post anyway in the next few days. Tell him there will be a test to check he's read it.
Daughter 1 says they're having the calm before the storm (she's on the south coast). Hospital is eerily quiet. Database drawn up to identify staff skills. Can she intubate a patient? - yes, as long as the patient weighs 1-5kg and is in NICU. Tough! - as of now that means she can intubate adults in A&E.
There are 5 (five) of the correct PPE masks in the entire hospital, and suddenly a lot of the junior doctors are wishing they hadn't been in such a hurry to complete their intubation training.
I told her she can have a note from her mother saying I am very strict about this and she is not allowed to work without full approved PPE. I can only assume she hasn't told her father what's going on because if he knew about it he'd have had her taken into protective custody.
In the UK we have NHS (the free one) and there is private hospitals too. Luckily we have insurance to pay for private.
NHS stopped weeks ago. Private are stopping at the moment, her hospital is doing ops this last week. Private hospitals are being rented out by NHS.
I've tried to avoid Dad. I phoned him today and, as usual, its ME ME ME. He sounded VERY disappointed that wifes Op has gone ahead..... Lovely.
He said I had to visit. Umm Dad I'm not supposed to drive around etc. Let alone visit you. And NO I am not visiting the weekend one day after wife comes home. No chance. So hes decided "oh well, you'll definitely come the weekend after then - you're wife will be fine then". No way Dad.
I solved the food problem last weekend. He was not happy. Now hes moaning hes got no cash to pay for "meals on wheels" and needs me to get cash for him. I KNOW hes got cash stashed in the house. I offered to phone "meals on wheels" and pay by card.... "On no its ok I'll manage".
After being up at 530am this am, taking wife to hospital for 7 (had to leave daughter with son for a bit had no choice), rushing home, sorting her out, then rushing to log on to work so I get paid today, Dads crap is not a priority!
Partial knee replacement. To be honest, since she did the other knee (doesnt need an op just yet but there is damage to that) shes no good to do anything until it gets sorted.
All non-emergency elective surgery posponed from midnight UFN is the latest news where I live.
I agree. Your wife needs you. Your dad doesn't.
Until my husband said "that is enough. Who cares WHAT it is called."
"I'd like a cup of tea". Sure, there you are. Then it starts: I prefer a different brand teabag. Not too full! Not too strong! Put milk in it. Not too much! It's still too hot. The cup is too big/small/hard to hold. Now it's cold.
So I make their half size, weak, drop of milk tea as they request. "What's this? You call this a cup of tea!" So you make them a normal cup of tea & walk off quickly. "Excuse me, EXCUSE me, is this TEA? I asked for tea". Sigh.
It could be the perfect cup of tea with a golden teaspoon & they still complain. Just want to have something to say.
Be prepared. Do not be his tea lady 😁
Prayers for a successful surgery for your wife. Prayers to you. 💞
What's she having done, an arthroscopy or something? If it's an in-out job, then yes I agree she might just as well combine recuperation with quarantine and get them out of the way together. Wish her fighting fit very soon, anyway.
Unless you have really begun to hate your father, please stay away from him. Your household contains a front line health worker and children. You are a risk to him. So just sit back and let him enjoy the grievance - he will be fine, and you know he will be fine.
He usually pays me - he didnt this time. I think I'm being punished for spending too much lol.
Wife having op wednesday. Hes had it now. Hes gonna have to understand....
OK I shouldn't visit anyway really, but with being non-mobile Im not planning to leave her alone in the house to struggle with a 6 year old just to meet his "wants"
Good luck to your wife if she does get her surgery. :)
I don’t blame you for feeling as you do. You have given your dad numerous chances.
I hope your wife will be able to get her knee surgery as soon as she can and starts to feel better.
Take care, Paul.
I am ensuring my 'needies' have food. By txt, no visits. If they run out of supplies I intend to do a driveby delivery. Dump on the porch only.
My folks heard our PM say avoid non-emergency travel & are processing this new situation. Dad understands. Not sure about Mum..
My sister is going into care Friday. She did NOT understand the need. Nevermind, it will happen.
Paul, it is unfortunate if your Dad doesn't understand the situation - you do & you have met his need for food. The *want* of a visit can go *insert rude word here*.