Archive for July, 2008
Hard memories and moving ahead
I talked to Amy Mitchell today. Her 3-year-old son, Paxten, died of leukemia five days after Mike died. We talked about the flashbacks and the short-term memory loss. “How are you dealing with that?” “Dealing with what?” We’re moving through parallel grief. Good days and bad, anger and acceptance, laughter and tears. Paxten is riding [...]
Flashbacks
I was browsing through the blog of another mom who lost a child to cancer just five days after Mike died. One of the things she said was that she keeps going back to the moment he died. It comes at seemingly random moments, when all seems to be going well, and suddenly I’m back [...]
I made it.
So I made it on to the site, I really miss Mikey, Im the little cousin that could. I would frequently call mikey when everything was down and out on my end and mikey always gave it to me straight. I am just like him in his sense of humor and “Boyd” way, you dont [...]
Weekend without Mike
Danny and Jennifer came up this weekend with Meghan and Trey (the two older girls were busy), and we went to Asheville’s annual street festival, Bele Chere. I was fine most of the time, but a few times during the weekend, I really, really missed Mike. Danny would say something, and I could almost hear [...]
The plan is taking shape
More friends and family have said they want to come to the rally in Savanah. My niece Christina wants to come. I might have to pass her a few bucks to get her there, but she and Mike adored each other. She got him tickets to a Slayer concert. I still have the hat, worn [...]
No need to worry…
One of my concerns is that the health care not be as good as it can possibly be. –George W. Bush inTipp City, Ohio, April 19, 2007, commenting on benefits provided to the military. That was just under a year before Mike died. And he doesn’t have to worry because health care is [...]
Get your plaid on
Things are starting to come together for our rally in Savanah on Aug. 24. I mailed off the permit application today for a gathering on the mall in Daffin Park. I was still pretty angry when I came up with the idea of a rally, and I guess I still am angry that Mike died [...]
The point
We visited with old friends this last week. Rob and Craig have been friends since fifth grade, and Craig’s entire family has become like our own. I call them the Jersey Gang. We’ve all vacationed together, the men played softball (pretty badly) for years. We have welcomed babies and watched them grow up and grieved [...]
Talking about Mike
I think it’s easier when I’m around people who’ve been with me since Mike died. Everyone wants to know how I’m coping and what happened at the end and on and on. I’m coping, but it’s harder here. Maybe it’s because I visited my sister’s grave and then my father’s grave yesterday. Mike doesn’t have [...]
Timing
It seems as though we’re timing things as before Mike got sick, after Mike got sick, before Mike died and since Mike died. All our lives seem to be broken down into that right now. Peyton and I were talking about her friendship with a boy tonight and it was broken down into those terms [...]
Have a beer in May
Stop into Altamont Brewing, 1042 Haywood Road, West Asheville, any time in May and ask for their "charity" beer of the day. Buy one and Life o' Mike gets $1. In fact, we get a buck for each one sold. So go in every day and have one to support Life o' Mike.
Thanks, Altamont!
Patient Pals & Family Friends
Life o' Mike has a peer support program for people with one or more serious or chronic medical issues or disabilities.
We aim to reduce isolation and fear among people who have conditions, including psychiatric illness, HIV/AIDS, diabetes, mild dementia or other cognitive disorder or disability, thereby reducing depression and complications as people learn to improve self-management of their medical conditions.
Patient Pals help alleviate feelings of isolation and frustration. They can help people develop a list of questions to ask the doctor and then accompany the person to the doctor to make sure all the questions are answered, taking notes to be sure the person understands the doctor’s answers.
Our trained volunteers also accompany their “Pals” to art exhibits, movies and walks outdoors, meet for coffee, call to check in and more.
Our Pals have experienced weight loss, improvement in diabetes, HIV, psoriasis, depression and more, just because they have someone who cares about them. Some relationships develop into longer-term friendships; other Pals move on to more independent lives.
Family Friends are there to help caregivers and other family members grow into their new role.
We need volunteers, who are asked to donate a minimum of one hour a week. Training is free and includes information on active listening, ways to help and when to know more help is needed.
And of course, we need funding.
To learn more, call Leslie Boyd at 828-243-6712 or e-mail lifeomike@gmail.com.
Start From Seed
Life o' Mike has a new program- Start from Seed (SFS).
SFS is a volunteer doula program aimed at providing non-medical, comprehensive support to low income, high-risk women and families of Buncombe County focusing on three areas:
1. We help new doulas with certification and training in return for their participation as a volunteer doula for SFS
2. We mentor volunteer doulas with their first few clients
3. Our volunteer doulas provide birth and postpartum doula services to low income, high risk moms, providing support and tools to empower them as a new parent.
A birth doula is a trained and experienced professional who provides continuous physical, emotional and informational support to the mother before, during and just after birth; a postpartum doula provides emotional and practical support during the postpartum period.
Start from Seed clients are referred to us from the Buncombe County Department of Health’s Nurse-Family Partnership Program, Western North Carolina Community Health Services, and Mission Hospital. The Program is intended and designed for growing clients’ inner strength and helping them gain empowerment to help them cope with the emotional, physical and mental challenges of childbirth, labor, and motherhood.
Our new moms and their infants have many needs. If you would like to help them get off to a good start, please visit our Start from Seed web site: Start from Seed, or call Program Director Chelsea Kouns at 804-814-9946.