Fairegold, you hit the nail on the head. Her ability to deal with any kind of problem is so low now as to be non-existent. This had been happening gradually, but it really accelerated after she broke her hip last year and had to have surgery followed by a month-long stay in a convalescent hospital. I remember you once saying that dealing with an elderly loved one is mainly going from one crisis to the next, some of them real & some of them not. Settling fear & soothing them is almost as important, maybe more important, than dealing with physical issues. I understand what you're saying about finding another doctor with a better bedside manner. When my husband & I went to calm my mother down, I put some moisturizing drops in her eyes. Even though both the doctor & I have told her numerous times to use the drops, especially after the injections, she never has bothered. But, apparently, they really helped her. When I called the next day to tell her I had made an emergency appointment for her, she told me she felt 100% better; her eyes didn't hurt anymore. I had asked her over & over the night before about pain & irritation in her eyes, but she assured me that there was no pain only vision loss. And, of course, once the irritation was gone, her vision seemed to improve too (to her way of thinking). So this crisis has passed, but I know there's another one just lurking around the corner. Her tolerance for pain has diminished so much that I don't think another injection, no matter how helpful it may be, is an option any longer. Thanks for your encouragement & advice. I'll be back when the next crisis, real or imagined, happens. Sue

Gosh I hate to be the "nay-sayer" here, but.....I strugled for 10 years with stenosis and ruptured disks and severe back pain. I cannot count the 'practices" I have tried...from chriopractor, acupuncture. that stretching machine and neurologists from Modesto Ca, to Oregon....all telling me that they could not rid me of any of my pain. Oh Pain Clinics too....horible, and epidurals...several. When my Balance became impaired and I went to a balance clinic...they alarmingly sent me to a spine clinic, fearing that the stenosis was begining to impact other functions (like bladder and balance) and immediately sent me to a spine surgeon at the Oregon Spine Clinic in Medford, where I met the most remarkable young surgeon (recently finished training in SF) who performed two separate surgeries over 3 days. First day going in from my side to take care of the disks, rest a day...then doing that lamenectomy (sp) where they usually put in pins and plates. Andy put in bone grafts....I was on my feet the very next day and had a spectacularly short recovery time with no limitations, to this day.It was so successful. I do not have the back pain that had nearly crippled me. My back still gets tired and I have not lost the weight I needed to lose ( that part is looking better today, as my knees and severe anemia are finally under control and we have started an exercise progam) I am 77 and feel today that I have been given back 10 years of my life. BTW I did have to develope kidney failure to get the anemia attended to, and I do get injections every two weeks.....kidney failure due to taking too many OTC pain medications. I think that the treatment for my anemia is how they are stabilizing my kidneys...and I am good so far. Sorry this is so long. I guess my message is that you should not give up trying to find "your" way. I am sure my guardian angel put Andy in my path just when my back really needed it....like an answer to a prayer. The same with the kidneys. I have had the aanemia for years with no answers or cure except for a bone marrow transplant....now those red blood cells are perking along famously....and I am so grateful.

Least favorites are Debra Messing (tile and floor) and LeBron James (too dark and oppressive). Some of the layouts are not very good. Jake Gyllenhaal has the washer/dryer in the kitchen....really?! I like Michelle Williams'.....no walking around the island to get from stove, to fridge to sink. Like the simplicity and compactness of Patrick Dempsey's too...but where does the poor maid/cook prep?

I was so shocked this morning when I read that tWitch had died. And at that time, it said that the cause of death was unknown. Since then I've read articles that say he died by suicide. I, too, thought that perhaps the end of the Ellen show had something to do with his depression. But I can't help but think of his kids, who are 3, 6, and 14. For them, the Christmas holiday season will always be associated with the death of their father.