Stories from Caregivers: Sherry from GEORGIA
GA
Sherry
FROM GEORGIA
My name is Sherry and I care for my mother and her name is Wetaunah (Tonnie for short). I started caring for my mother when she was diagnosed with ovarian caner that metastasized into colon rectal cancer. She was first told of her ovarian cancer 14 years ago and was in remission for 12 years. She started hurting and went to the doctor and they ran test only to find out that it had come back and had spread. At the same time she found out she was going with her mother (Patrica) for treatment of lymphoma cancer. After we got the results back and found out she was going to have to have surgeries and treatment we decided to go to the same doctor that her mother was going to. To make a long uphill battle with 6 surgeries and never ending treatments and the loss of her mother later short, my mother had to have someone there with her to help her recoup and do all the house hold stuff. So I decided to move in with her and help. My father Larry is still here and working as much as he can, but he has had it rough as well with a heart bypass surgery, heart attack, and 4 stents as well as breathing treatments for emphysema. My dad is 67 and my mother is 62 and both have worked all my 45 years, so I kinda felt compelled to pitch in and help out as much as I can. I also worked full time up until 2 years ago. It was just too much to handle with my mom going every week for treatment and dad in and out of the hospital as well. I help them with appointments back and forth as well as all the house hold chores, errands, cooking, shopping, and nursing for them both. I feel so worn out some days and never have time for me or things I want to do so I would say a little time for me would be great, as well as a paying job so I could earn my keep. The best part of it all is I get the joy of being there for them as well as they let me stay with them rent free and feed me, of which I am eternally grateful for. I find that the most challenging part of it all is time, seems there's never enough of it, and so many things to do. My tips to others would be to find someone to help you out from time to time and express how you feel about things. Keeping it bottled up is not good for any of us.
