The Stairs Broke Grandma

I had an incredible first week with my son and his family helping them settle into their new home. This second week of my stay has been a bit different. In fact, it has been a kind of torture from a purely physical standpoint. A few issues converged to challenge my ability to accomplish everything I desired in my usual fashion. Some of the problems can be attributed to my own negligence, others to those blasted steps.

Why is it that when I leave home, I think I can simply abandon some routines that literally promote my well-being? While at home, I begin my day with a 4-minute morning warmup stretching routine. I follow a wonderful app on my phone called “Stretching Exercises”. It’s a great app and I use it for multiple routines. Stretching improves flexibility and helps prevent injuries. I know this. And yet, I embarked upon my first week in a home where I had to climb up and down a total of four staircases multiple times a day. I had to go up a flight or down a flight just to use the bathroom. I did this without warmup nor warning for my knees and now I am paying the price. My weak left knee became overly stressed and inflamed, rendering it painful and almost entirely useless.

My son tapped into his compassion and purchased a knee brace and Tylenol for me. Someone told me that he considered a cane, too, but didn’t go there. I added more anti-inflammatory foods like blueberries, strawberries, almonds, broccoli and turmeric to my daily menu since I can’t take Ibuprofen because of my chronic kidney disease. And instead of unpacking, organizing and decorating at my usual pace, I sat on the sofa with an elevated knee and an ice pack several times a day, giving advice. I spent a lot of time ordering needed items from Amazon than putting them away. The most disappointing thing was that I could no longer sit on the playmat with my grandson because I literally could not get up. Thankfully, he’s good sitting on my lap, staring into my glasses or playing with my sparkling Brighten beans that I wear especially for him.

On top of my knee problems, I was shocked and worried when my ankles and feet swelled up. At first, I assumed the issue was related to overuse of my limbs. But I was also having weird heart issues at bedtime when I took my newly prescribed blood pressure medicine. It was my mistake not to ask the doctor about the possible side effects since he neglected to mention them on his own. I stopped taking it for fear that I might not wake up in the morning and I looked up the side effects of the medication. My physician daughter-in-law confirmed my suspicions. Sure enough, the most common side effect was swollen ankles and feet and heartbeat issues. Since my blood pressure is borderline and my kidney disease hasn’t gotten any worse in five years of monitoring it, I’m hopeful that my switch to a plant-based diet will solve the issues and eliminate the need for medication.

Although my timing wasn’t optimum, becoming a vegan was a good idea. I think perhaps I should have waited until I returned home to fully immerse myself in this new lifestyle. Being here, I find myself cooking vegan meals for myself and meat-centric meals for my son’s family. In other words, I’m doing double duty in the kitchen every day. Besides going to the bathroom and a store or two, cooking is my only sustained movement every day.

One thing I did prepare for was the fact that they have hardwood floors throughout the entire house. Knowing the fragility of my feet on hard surfaces, I purchased a pair of OOFOS Sport Slides for myself and my son and his wife in advance of my trip and their moving in. The slides are cushiony and protective against the hard surfaces. I purchased them on Amazon for a worthwhile $60 a pair. They are so incredible that I’ve decided that close family members are receiving these slippers from me for their birthdays this year.

As I prepare to head home tomorrow, I’m both proud and regretful. Next time, I won’t neglect my morning stretch and hopefully I’ll weigh a lot less, eliminating some of the stress on my knees as I tackle the stairs in their beautiful new home.